


Bountiful

by Speary



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Babies, Bunker Fluff, Canon through season 13 mostly, Dead Gabriel (Supernatural), Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gabriel (Supernatural) May or May Not be Dead, I'm taking liberties with some of the finale stuff, M/M, Men of Letters Bunker, Nephilim, Protective Dean Winchester, dean worries, will add tags as needed
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-13
Updated: 2019-02-11
Packaged: 2019-05-06 08:33:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 68,967
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14638080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Speary/pseuds/Speary
Summary: Things were good, or maybe just okay for one night, then the babies started showing up. Dean, Sam, Castiel, and a whole village of helpers do their best to take care of the infinite stream of babies that keep showing up at the bunker.





	1. The First Child

Dean woke up from the deepest sleep he’d gotten in some time. Things were okay, not good, but okay. At least no one was riding shotgun in his meatsuit anymore. That had been dumb. Jack survived, so there was that. And all things considered, it really could have been worse. More were saved than lost, so it was kind of a win. And until last night sleep had been hard to come by.

 

Something felt off though. At first Dean chalked it up to still just waking up. He threw his legs over the side of the mattress and stretched out long and lean. His stomach rumbled a little protest. It should be used to being deprived, he thought. Eating had not been much of a priority for the past couple of weeks. He stood and made his way out to the hall, pulling on the grey robe as he went.

 

There was an extra noise that he found himself focusing upon, a whimper seemingly coming from rather far off. He made his way down the hall to the war room. He tipped his head to pick up on the sound again. It was suddenly quiet. Dean felt the little pinpricks of worry run over the skin of his arms. “Shit. Not even a single day.” Dean reached down to the underside of the table and pulled out the gun he had stowed there for emergency situations.

 

He heard the whimper again. He considered calling out for Sam, but somehow managed to convince himself that it might be nothing. It could have been a bit of air seeping past a door or something. It wasn’t, but it could have been. Dean walked gingerly up the metal steps toward the door, gun at the ready. The noise picked up in volume just a little. It was more like crying now. Dean gripped the door handle, and taking a deep breath, opened the door.

 

He aimed out into the early morning space. There was no one there, at least not at eye level. The tension slipped away a little. Then the whimpering drew his eyes down to the swaddled infant in a white wicker travel bassinet. It was off to the side of the door. Dean felt the worry kick right back up again, but he moved out of the bunker into the world and looked down at the baby.

 

Dean cast a worried glance around the area. No one was there. He could hear a distant bird call out, and a little breeze that picked up some leaves near his feet. There was nothing else though, at least not that he could tell. The baby whimpered again, it’s little face looking like it was gearing up for a good cry. Dean reached down and picked up the bassinet. “You’ll be okay. You got a mom somewhere out here, buddy?” His voice was low and comforting. He carried the baby into the bunker and set the whole bassinet, on the table. “Sammy!” He called out.

 

He set the gun back into the holster under the table. There was a note peeking out from the edge of the bedding in the bassinet. Dean pulled it out as Sam slowly shuffled into the room, rubbing his eye with the back of his fist. When he focused on the table, the sleep rushed away from him. “What the hell is that?”

 

Dean replied, “They call them babies, Sam.” He unfolded the note and scanned it before reading it.

 

“Yeah, I know what a baby is. Why do we have one?” Sam came to his side and stared down at the now smiling face. It was certainly warmer in the bunker.

 

“Her name’s Ellie,” Dean read. “People don’t expect anything from babies, so she’s been this way forever. Just like her dad. He said you’d take care of her.”

 

“Who’s it from,” Sam asked.

 

“Doesn’t say,” Dean said as he handed the letter to Sam. He reached into the bassinet and lifted the baby free from the space. She was light and quite confined in her little burrito blanket. “Who brought you here little Ellie?” Dean whispered into the side of her head as he took an unconscious breath of baby scent in.

 

Sam set down the letter. “I’m gonna go check the area where you found her. Was she outside?”

 

“Yeah, just outside the door up there.” Dean nodded up to the landing.

 

“How’d you know she was there?”

 

“Don’t know. Had a feeling when I woke up, then I heard her.” Dean started bouncing her a little as he cradled the back of her head.

 

“Heard her?” Sam’s eyebrow kicked up.

 

“Yeah, she was whimpering.”

 

Sam came back to his side. “Maybe we should be careful. You shouldn’t have been able to hear a baby whimpering that far away and past all the walls.”

 

“You think I can’t take a baby?” Dean laughed and set the baby back in the bassinet. “Sam thinks I’m weaker than a baby. Isn’t that just the best.” He was talking to the baby in one of those silly voices that adults fall into whenever young children are present. The baby was smiling up at him, eyes shining and blue.

 

“Just saying, something’s not right.”

 

“On that we agree. Not gonna freak out about a baby though.”

 

“Could be another Amara.”

 

“Nope. Doesn’t feel like that.” Dean loosened the wrap around the baby, and a little arm was freed. He put his finger out to let her grip it.

 

“You sure?” Sam leaned in and looked at her a little closer.

 

“It’s different, Sam. Go check the spot outside the door. Let me know if you see anything weird. I’ll keep an eye on Ellie here.” Sam nodded and walked off to do just that. Ellie kept a grip on Dean’s finger. Dean smiled at her. Something in him felt quite happy. It wasn’t a weird Amara bond or anything supernatural. It was just the moment that spoke to the secret part of him that always wanted something like this.

 

A few minutes later and Sam was back inside. “There were footprints that ran back to a set of tire tracks about 300 yards off. Whoever it was is long gone now.”

 

“Looks like you’re ours for now little one.” Dean turned to Sam as he lifted Ellie and the bassinet. “Go into town and pick up supplies. We’ll need newborn sized diapers, wet wipes, bottles, formula, and tiny baby clothes. Maybe get some extra blankets too.” Dean took her bassinet back to his room and started clearing a space for her there. Sam left, hastily tapping the list into his phone as he went.

 

Ellie cooed in the little nest of blankets, her fists waving about delightedly.

 

One baby is a handful. More than that and one might need a few reinforcements. The Winchesters would be needing reinforcements soon enough, for the blessing that was this one child, was just a sign of the bountiful blessings to come.


	2. A Second Child

Sam actually brought back everything that Dean asked for and then some. It was a bit of overkill. Clearly, Sam hadn’t spent much time around babies. Little kids, he understood those, but babies, not so much. So, now the main room was a showcase of baby supplies, including a pumping system that made no sense whatsoever. Dean just rolled his eyes at that one.

 

Sam’s response had not helped the situation. “I wasn’t thinking about it. I just thought we had to pump the formula through it or something to sterilize it.”

 

It took Dean some time to recover from the fit of laughter that doubled him over. He’d settled Ellie into his room, and had his desk arranged so that it could be used as a makeshift changing table. She’d been sleeping for about a half hour when Sam came home. “So, you gonna start doing your research on this kid?” Dean asked.

 

“Honestly, I don’t know where to begin.” Sam was pacing. “You think maybe this isn’t our sort of thing?”

 

Dean got in his path. “What do you mean, not our sort of thing?”

 

“I mean, not a supernatural thing. We really can’t take in babies Dean. She’d be better off with a more traditional family,” Sam paused when Dean didn’t immediately agree and added, “Right?”

 

“No,” Dean said and then started pacing himself. “There’s something to this, and before we go tossing her into some Brady Bunch family, we’re gonna find out what’s up.” Dean hastily scooped up the formula and a pack of bottles to carry off to the kitchen.

 

Sam followed him. “I’m not saying that we just toss her at the first willing family. I’m just saying that this might not be something that we should be spending a lot of time on. You know.”

 

“You got something more important that you need to be doing?” Dean threw his arms out at his sides and then ducked into the kitchen. He started unwrapping the bottles and tossing them into the sink. “Really, Sam, we’re between apocalypses, and last I checked, heaven was doing okay too.” He stopped moving for a moment and tipped his head to the side. “Speaking of…” Dean turned to Sam now and smiled. “Oh, Castiel angel dude extraordinaire. Come to the bunker, as we mere mortals have some questions for you.”

 

“You’re gonna make him come here? Really? You know he’s busy.” Sam sounded as put out as Cas was likely to be once he got to them. 

 

“You got any better sources up your sleeve for this situation? Yeah, didn’t think so. Besides, Cas would want to help. Everyone likes babies.” Dean turned back to the sink. “Except you apparently.”

 

“I like babies. I just don’t like mystery babies that might be evil.”

 

Dean laughed as he turned. “She’s not evil. She’s a baby.”   
  


“Yeah, well, did you really read that letter? It was way weird.” Sam fished it out of his pocket. Apparently, he had decided to carry the thing around. “Her name’s Ellie,” Sam read the letter out loud. “People don’t expect anything from babies, so she’s been this way forever. Just like her dad. He said you’d take care of her.” Sam stood there shooting Dean the double megawatt bitch face. “She’s been this way forever. What does that even mean?”

 

“Don’t know. Haven’t thought about it much yet.” Dean turned back to the sink and started washing the new bottles out. “I just feel like we gotta do this. She needs us, and frankly, I welcome this. It’ll be nice to do something good that won’t involve the world ending.”

 

A small cry was rolling to them from down the hall. “You want me to take care of that,” Sam asked. 

“Uh, no. You’ll just make a mess. Maybe just wash the bottles out and make up some formula.” Sam looked nervously at the big tub of formula on the counter. “It’s easy, just follow the directions. Test the milk on the inside of your wrist to be sure it’s not too hot.” Dean walked out of the room to go tend to the baby, leaving Sam in his wake.

 

* * *

 

 

The day was long. Dean did most of the baby duty, and Sam took to the laptop with an occasional break from the research to “help.” Dean was noting Ellie’s patterns, like how long she slept for and how much she liked to drink. He wondered if she’d sleep through the night. 

 

For now, Dean was sitting in one of his lounge chairs in the rec room. He had it reclined back all the way, and Ellie was sleeping on his chest. She’d finished a full bottle, burped and promptly closed her eyes. Dean closed his eyes too, figuring on catching a nap right along with her so that he’d be ready for the middle of the night feeding and changing that would likely happen.

 

Cas hadn’t called. Dean thought that he might. He even snapped a picture of himself with the baby and sent it.  _ Just me being a stay at home dad. Nothing big.  _

 

Cas didn’t reply to that either. Dean wondered if he got the messages when he was in heaven. Not like it was part of this plain of existence. Still with his eyes closed he leaned down a little and softly kissed the top of Ellie’s fuzzy little head. She squeeze her little fists against him and didn’t wake up. She smelled of powder and formula.  _ Should probably give her a bath. Don’t want her to get all sour smelling. _ His mind slipped off into dreams though and sleep. 

 

Some time later, he woke up with a start. Cas was sitting in the chair next to him, just watching them sleep. “Shit, how long you been here?” 

 

“Not long. You have a baby?” Castiel delivered the news in his too straightforward manner.

 

“Yeah, picked up on that. So you don’t respond to texts anymore?” Dean shifted in the seat a little, careful not to disturb Ellie.

 

“I didn’t know what to say. Jack’s with Sam.” Castiel got up and stood over Dean and the baby. “Here.” He reached down and took the baby off of Dean’s chest as gently as he could. “She isn’t as young as she seems.”

 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Dean got up and stood close to Cas. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust him to hold the baby, it was more that he didn’t like the separation. 

 

Ellie opened her eyes slowly and looked straight at Cas. Her eyes widened as if she were a bit surprised. Dean leaned further into Cas’ space. Cas said, “Hello little one.” He smiled at her all warm and genuine. 

 

“Her name’s Ellie.”

 

“Yes, Sam mentioned that.” Cas stroked the edge of Ellie’s cheek with his fingers. “He also mentioned how she just showed up. He said you heard her outside.”

 

“Yeah, I did.” Dean wondered if Cas would suggest that they give her up too. The worry must have shown on his face. 

 

“She was lucky that you found her. It’s been cold lately. Too cold for babies.” The last was said in the cooing voice used to soothe children. Dean raised a brow at that. 

 

“You like babies?”

 

“Of course.”

 

“It’s just that I thought after the last babysitting gig that you maybe weren’t too fond of them.” Dean reached out a hand and settled it on her head, visions of he and Cas in Rexford dealing with the Rit Zein there.

 

“Babies are just tiny humans, and I think that I’ve more than established my fondness for humanity.” Cas looked to him and smiled, all teeth and gums. He turned back to Ellie though and added, “This baby, though, is more than a human, aren’t you Ellie?”

 

Dean felt the twist in his stomach, the too good to be true stab. “Damn.”

 

“She’s a nephilim.” Cas looked to him again. “Though, I’m not sure why she’s still in this form. She’s several years old.”

 

“Oh, oh.” Dean took a step back. “That makes a kind of sense. Sam show you the letter?”

 

“He did.”

 

“She’s been like this forever,” Dean recited. “She’s not aging.”

 

“Yes, but why?” Cas asked. He turned his eyes back to Ellie. “Is there a reason you want to stay small like this?”

 

She just cooed and squeezed Cas’ jacket sleeve. “Is she safe?” Dean wasn’t sure why he asked. He felt certain that she wasn’t going to pose a danger. Plus, there was Cas, holding her like she was delicate.

 

“If she wanted to hurt you, she’d have let you know by now, and there’d be nothing any of us could really do about it.” He paced with her for a bit. “She’d like some formula.”

 

“Okay.” Dean lead them to the kitchen, and started fixing up a bottle. Jack and Sam eventually  joined them. “Cas says she’s a nephilim. Looks like you got a sibling, Jack.”

 

Jack came to Cas’ shoulder and leaned over to look at Ellie. “Hello,” he whispered. “She is small.”

 

“Yeah, kinda wondering why she’s not growing up like a normal kid.” Dean held out his hands to Cas and was handed the baby. He took her and the bottle to the table and sat down with her for the feeding. Jack followed him to the table, mesmerized. “I mean, you figured it out pretty quick.” Dean nodded at Jack.

 

“Being young isn’t safe.” Jack reached out to her and brushed her head with his hand. “You have to rely on people if you stay this young.”

 

“Um, the letter said something about that.” Dean looked to Sam. “You uncover anything in the research department concerning what we might be dealing with here?”

 

“Didn’t know she was a nephilim, so that would be a no.” Sam leaned into the doorframe. “What will she need?” He directed the question at Cas.

 

“She’s a baby, so mostly whatever you’d give to a baby. Although, she’s also a nephilim, and as such, she might not really need anything.”

 

“She’s certainly going through the formula like a standard baby would,” Dean said.

 

“I don’t need to eat much, but I like to sometimes,” Jack offered. “Maybe she just likes formula.”

 

“Maybe.” Ellie had finished the bottle. Dean lifted her to his shoulder and patted her back until she burped. “Good girl.” 

 

“She seems to sleep about as much as a baby too.” Sam pushed off the wall. “I hate to say this, but I’m kinda feeling tired. You all mind if I head off to bed?”

 

Dean laughed. “You spent too long thinking about me watching over a baby?”

 

“Asshole.”

 

Dean covered Ellie’s ears and said with one hundred percent mockery, “Not in front of the baby.” He got up and marched past them all. “Ellie and I are going to bed too. Maybe tomorrow we can talk this out some more and figure out who this baby came from.”

 

“Jack and I will do some research while you two sleep.” Cas came to his side and rested a hand on his shoulder. “Goodnight little one.” Then he leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to her head. Dean watched and smiled. It warmed him a little to be that close to such a moment. Then Cas turned to him, all close, and said, “Goodnight Dean. See you in the morning.” 

 

* * *

 

 

There was comfort in waking up, knowing that you’re not alone. Ellie let him sleep longer than he normally would have. When he woke, it was just after six and it was to the sound of a happy cooing baby. Dean rolled over to face the desk side of his room and was surprised to see Cas sitting at the desk. He was holding a baby and rocking gently back and forth in the chair. “Good morning, Dean.”

 

“You decided to just come on in and feed Ellie?” Then Dean noticed that the cooing was not coming from the baby in Cas’ arms. Ellie was in the bassinet on the floor next to his bed. “Wait, what?”

 

“It would appear that you and Sam are becoming inundated with wayward nephilim.” Cas finished feeding this new baby and lifted it to his shoulder. He gave it a few pats and it burped. 

 

“Where was this one?” Dean sat up and threw his legs over the side of the bed. Ellie started babbling. Dean reached down and picked her up, cradling her to his chest.

 

“He was just outside the garage. There was a note with this one as well.” He jostled the baby a little. His sunshine blonde hair was long and straight. Cas reached into his pocket and pulled out a letter and passed it to Dean.

 

Dean fumbled with the letter, unfolding it while holding the baby.  He read it aloud, “He said I’d know what to do when the time came. He left me your address. The child’s name is Samuel. He’s a good baby, just lazy.”

 

Dean looked at Cas with a raised brow. “I thought that bit was odd too.”

 

“Babies aren’t lazy.”

 

“I know. Perhaps that is the impression this person had though, since this child is roughly ten years old. It would be difficult for a parent to care for a baby forever, I suppose.” Cas shrugged.

 

“Maybe. Still, that’s hardly the most weird thing in all of this.”

 

“It’s certainly odd.” Cas set his baby into the bassinet. “It is also odd that it is called Samuel. I imagine that this will prove confusing for your brother when he wakes up.”

 

“Also, not the biggest issue.” Dean shifted Ellie a little in his grip. “The bigger issue is why are we suddenly getting regular nephilim deliveries, and when will this stop?”

 

Cas sat at his side and leaned into his space. He brushed a hand over Ellie’s head. “I suppose we will need to do more research.”


	3. And Another Makes Three

It was hard to get any research done with all of the baby duty that needed to be done. When Ellie was done feeding, it seemed to be time for Samuel to do the same. Then there were diapers to be changed and holding that needed to happen.

 

Castiel was helpful with the baby business, and somehow Sam and Jack became the research team. This suited Dean just fine. He never was a fan of research. The physical, actions, that was his area. It wasn’t that he didn’t enjoy a good book or finding useful information. It was that he worried over what he’d miss when rushing through the Library’s many volumes.

 

A week had passed at least, and no new babies had arrived. Dean hoped that they were going to continue on this way. Two babies were plenty. Hell, one was plenty. Samuel seemed to be a baby with patterns though. Patterns made things easier. Too bad his patterns weren’t entirely synced up with Ellie’s randomness.

 

Currently, they were both drinking from their bottles. It was a rare moment of synchronicity, and Dean was enjoying it. Cas was leaned back against the desk, bottle tipped up into Samuel’s mouth, while Dean sat on the bed doing the same for Ellie. Castiel was humming something softly to Samuel, a song that Dean didn’t know.

 

“You’re good at this, ya know.” Dean smiled over at him.

 

Cas smiled back. “It’s a simple enough task.” He moved off the desk and came to the bed. He took a seat next to Dean, their arms all pressed close to one another. “You’re good at this too. Fatherhood suits you.”

 

“I wouldn’t call it fatherhood. I mean, it’s not like we’ll get to keep them.” Dean looked down at Ellie in his arms. Her eyes were drooping with the beginnings of sleep. When he spoke, though, her eyes widened. There was worry and surprise in her look.

 

“Who else would be capable of tending to the needs of a nephilim baby? I’m certain that this is the best place for them.” Cas shifted Samuel over to his other arm and leaned into Dean’s side more. He looked down at Ellie and smiled at her. “You want to stay with Dean, don’t you little one?”

 

Ellie cooed and waved her little arms around. Her eyes started closing again a few moments later. Dean got up and settled her into the bassinet. “I should get her a crib.”

 

Cas set Samuel down in the secondary bassinet that they had hastily made up for him. “They could both use one.” He came back to Dean’s side and sat again, just as close as before. The warmth of Cas’ arm seemed to radiate right through his coat and into Dean. It was comforting. Dean found himself pressing right back into him, sucking up the feel of the moment.

 

The time together over the past week had felt like longer. It seemed as if Cas had always been there, and Ellie and Samuel too. Cas was spending a fair amount of time in Dean’s room. Some nights he’d just lean back in the desk chair and close his eyes in quiet contemplation. He’d tend to the babies if Dean didn’t wake up fast enough. Dean usually woke up with the second cry. He had prided himself on only needing a few hours of sleep per night to be functional, but the sleep that he had been getting since the babies arrived had not been ideal.

 

Cas seemed to know this. Last night when Dean tried to get up, Cas set a firm palm against his chest and pushed him back into bed. “No, you sleep.” The words had been whispered, but they were strong and not to be countered. Dean closed his eyes again and slept. He felt refreshed now.

 

“Maybe we let Sam and Jack watch them today while we go into Hastings for cribs and supplies,” Dean considered out loud. He looked down at Ellie and wondered if he would be okay with leaving her in Sam and Jack’s care. They were trustworthy, but they lacked all skill in the field of baby care.

 

Cas seemed to see his thoughts and said, “They’d learn how to deal with the unknown. They’ll never learn if we don’t let them try.”

 

“Yeah, but it would be a fair amount of time. Just the driving alone would be a couple of hours.”

 

“And they would survive,” he paused and added, “Sam and Jack, I mean. They’d survive. The babies are not as delicate as they seem.” Cas smiled and reached down a finger that he let Samuel grip. Samuel squeezed and gurgled a little.

 

“He looks like he’s gotten a little bigger,” Dean said.

 

“Only a small amount. I think that’s a sign that he trusts us.” Cas wiggled his finger in Samuel’s grip.

 

“Or that he doesn’t trust us and thinks that he has to grow up real quick.”

 

Cas’ smile fell away. “Oh, I hadn’t thought of that.” He leaned down closer to Samuel in his little bassinet and asked, “Are you growing because you don’t trust us?”

 

Samuel’s little face scrunched up and turned bright red. The room filled with the scent of his effort. “Well, shit,” Dean said then laughed at his little joke. “That one’s yours.”

 

“I guess I have my answer.” Cas scooped the baby up and set him on the makeshift changing table. He began undoing the jumper and laid out the fresh diaper and wipes. Dean stared down at Ellie looking peaceful. She hadn’t changed. Maybe that meant that she trusted him. Maybe that meant that she wouldn’t grow up and leave. It was an odd line of thinking, but he was already feeling rather attached. It had been a week, but again it had felt like so much longer.

 

“Don’t ever change,” Dean whispered down to her as she slept. Dean looked up and saw that Cas was looking it him. His lips were turned just slightly into a frown. His eyes seemed sad. “You okay?”

 

“Change is inevitable, Dean. Don’t ask her not to change.”

 

“Sorry.” Dean looked back at her, but she still slept and likely didn’t hear him.

 

* * *

 

 

After breakfast, Dean and Cas handed off the babysitting to Sam and Jack. Sam offered up a different plan in which he and Jack would go to Hastings. Cas countered the plan by saying, “Dean’s been doing nothing but watch the babies for over a week. He hasn’t slept fully or had a moment to even think. Let him have these few hours out of the bunker.”

 

Sam couldn’t argue with that. Jack was already making goofy faces down into Ellie’s bassinet that was perched on the table. Sam was holding Samuel and rocking him boldly back and forth. He looked nervous. Cas set a hand on Dean’s back and steered him toward the garage. It took a full twenty minutes of silent driving before Dean spoke. “You sure they’ll be okay?”

 

Cas laughed a little. “Of course they’ll be okay. Sam kills monsters, and Jack is a nephilim. What can two babies do to either of them?”

 

“Uh, knock on wood, Cas. That sounds like famous last words right there. We still don’t know what made them show up or who their parents are. They could be part of some grand plot.”

 

“They’re babies, Dean, babies. And don’t act like you aren’t already hopelessly attached to them.” Cas reached out and set his arm across the back of the seat of the Impala. He gave Dean’s shoulder a squeeze. “I’m not saying that there are no worrisome mysteries to solve here, but I am saying that there is no danger to us or your brother and Jack. I’d see it in them.”

 

“Would you?” Dean glanced over at him.

 

“I would. Their thoughts are pure. It’s refreshing to see such thoughts.” Cas was smiling, all soft as he stared out the window.

 

They rode on in silence for a little longer. Cas was humming his song again, and Dean wondered if it had lyrics. He didn’t interrupt though, as he wanted to keep hearing it. Cas’ hand drifted back to his shoulder and his thumb traced a path back and forth there. The quiet was nice. Dean’s phone began buzzing on the seat between them. Dean glanced down at the name on the screen, Jody.

 

“You mind answering that and throwing it on speaker?” Dean asked Cas.

 

Cas swiped the flashing button to answer then set it to speaker. “Hello, Sheriff Mills,” Cas said.

 

“Hello?” Jody drew out the word, confusion evident in her tone.

 

“Hey, Jodes,” Dean added. “ Cas and I have you on speaker. We’re driving out to Hastings.”

 

“Oh,” Jody sounded like herself again and continued, “Good. I just got off the phone with Sam. He said you were heading that way.” She laughed. “Well, he said that between the babies crying. It was funny.”

 

“Are they okay?” Dean was subconsciously slowing down the car. He was ready to flip it around and barrel right on home. Cas’ hand moved back to his shoulder and squeezed it again reassuringly.

 

Jody said, “Oh, yeah, he’s totally fine. Babies cry. He tried to off-load them on me though. Tried to remind me that I run a home for wayward youth or something like that. I just laughed at him and told him to do his part and stop belly-aching.” Jody laughed again.

 

“You sure they’re okay?” Dean asked again.

 

“You mama hen. They’re fine.” Jody sounded distant for a second, but Dean could make out her saying, “Tell Claire to go to Lebanon, Kansas. Yeah, the bunker. No, don’t tell her about the babies. That’s half the fun.” When she spoke again, it was to them and not muffled. “Was gonna send Claire to deal with the Hastings Haunting. Now I’m sending her to Sam to help out there. You and Cas can take care of a simple salt and burn.”

 

“Wait, what?” Dean asked. He was struggling to keep up with the conversation.

 

“It might make your trip to Hastings an overnighter but it won’t be the end of the world. Plus, you’ll get some sleep. Sam said you hadn’t slept straight through the night for over a week.”

 

“I’m so not packed for an overnighter.” Dean turned to Cas a little and said, “A little help here buddy.”

 

“I don’t see any problem with Jody’s plan. We swoop in, rid the town of a spirit, and swoop out. Oh, and pick up the cribs. We need to make sure that we don’t forget the cribs.”

 

“You don’t think this is a bit much for Sam and Jack?” Dean asked.

 

Jody said, “I’m sending Claire.”

 

“No offence to Claire, Jody, but she didn’t ever strike me as a baby loving gal.” Dean pulled over feeling the need to really focus on this plan or maybe turn around.

 

“She’s not,” Jody said. “It’ll be good for her. You worried that two hunters and a nephilim can’t handle some babies?”

 

“They’re nephilim babies, Jody.” Dean’s voice was the picture of exasperation. “Why is nobody concerned about any of this?”

 

“Are you saying that you won’t take care of the angry spirit, Dean?”

 

Dean huffed out a long loud breath of air and tipped his head back against the seat. Cas responded for him, “We’ll take care of it Sheriff Mills. Send us the details on Dean’s phone.”

 

“Great. Also, call me Jody. Sheriff Mills sounds too formal for us.”

 

Cas smiled and said, “Okay, Jody.” He reached down and hung up. He reached into his own pocket and pulled out his phone. He poked around on the face of it then held it to his ear. “Jack, let Sam know that we’ll be home tomorrow and that Claire is coming to the bunker to help out.” Dean could almost hear the air quotes.

 

Dean whispered, “Ask him how the babies are doing?”

 

“Dean wants to know if the babies are okay. The only answer that will be okay for him is to say that the babies are fine and happy.”

Dean rolled his eyes and pulled back onto the road, heading for Hastings. He whispered at Cas,  “Dick.”

 

“He says the babies are fine and happy.” Cas was grinning and Dean thought that was damn rude.

 

“Seriously, are they doing okay?”

 

Cas hung up and set his phone next to Dean’s. “Of course, they’re fine, Dean. Stop worrying.” He glanced at the speedometer. “Drive faster. This is pathetically slow.”

 

Dean looked at the speedometer and saw that it was just hovering over 40 mph. They were on a broad straightaway. He really could go way faster. He pressed his foot down heavily on the accelerator. The car sucked them back into the seat, and they sped onward toward Hastings.

 

* * *

 

 

Jody texted them the details, a simple haunting really. The difficult part was figuring out what the spirit had attached itself to. Dean refused to get a room, denying that it would even be necessary. He even called Sam at 10 to see if he needed them to come home. Claire answered though. “Sam is sleeping. Who calls a house full of babies this late?”

 

“Hey, Claire. Good to hear your voice,” Dean said.

 

“Call tomorrow afternoon, like a reasonable person.” With that she hung up.

 

Cas said, “Funny that she’d be so offended. I thought that teenagers were use to late nights.”

 

“Maybe we should go back and check on them.” Dean tried.

 

“Clearly, that’s what we should do.” Cas rolled his eyes, but Dean didn’t see it.

 

“Really?” Hope lined every bit of the word’s utterance.

 

“No. Go book a room. You need sleep.” Cas waved at the motel office that they were parked near. They’d been sitting there for some time while Dean tried to commit to his situation. He tossed the phone down and did as he was told.

 

He came back to the car and rounded it to the trunk. He popped it open and pulled out the plastic bag from the back. It contained a set of sweatpants and some toiletries that he picked up from the store when it started seeming like they’d be stuck for the night. He could hear Cas getting out of the car before he closed the trunk. “We could just sleep at home and come back in the morning.”

 

“Which room is ours?” Cas asked as if he hadn’t said a thing about going home.

 

“Five.” Dean closed the trunk and stalked over to the room. He pressed the keycard to the panel over the handle. It made a clicking noise and flashed a green light. They passed into the room that wasn’t as old and musty as the rooms that Dean had been accustomed to. “Not bad.”

 

“They must have remodeled it since the last time we were here.” Cas took off his coat and laid it over the back of the chair. Dean watched him. It was like the guy was naked all of a sudden with the shedding of just that one layer. Cas caught his eye and raised a brow. “What?”

 

Dean swallowed and outwardly struggled for a moment. “Uh, we’ve been here before?” He went with that.

 

“Yes, several times.” He reached out to Dean’s head and pressed a pair of fingers to Dean’s temple. “Are you okay? Did you hit your head when the spirit tossed you?”

 

Dean batted his hand away. “I’m fine.” Dean took a step back. “I’m just not focused.”

 

“The babies will be fine.” He settled into one of the chairs near the window. “I never thought you’d get attached so easily to babies. Have you always had a fondness for small humans?”

 

Dean sat across from him on the bed and started taking off his shoes. “I enjoyed taking care of Sammy. I don’t know if I realized it at the time, but hindsight is clarifying on that a great deal.”

 

“It’s different though. I mean, they aren’t your relatives.”

 

“Not really how we roll, now is it? Family has always been about something else.” Dean tucked his shoes a bit under the bed.

 

“I understand. I suppose though, that it always seemed to be a distinction that was earned over time and through shared experiences that one might call dangerous.”

 

“You saying I can’t call Samuel and Ellie family until they help us end an apocalypse or two?” Dean smiled as he asked it.

 

“Well, maybe one apocalypse. They are still babies after all.”

 

Dean got up with a laugh. He pulled out the sweatpants and used his teeth on the price tags to remove them. “I’m gonna change and get to bed. We can start early tomorrow.” Cas nodded his agreement. Dean made quick work of the changing, brushed his teeth and opened the door to the room. Cas was sitting on the bed with the laptop now, tapping away on the keys. He had taken off the suit jacket that he always wore and even had his tie off. Dean paused in the doorway before committing to the room again. “So, what’s your plan for while I sleep?” Dean eased away from the doorframe and toward the bed.

 

Cas glanced up at him and then went back to the computer. “Research. I imagine that I’ll be able to narrow down the possible items that she’s attached herself to. Maybe when you wake up, it’ll be quicker.”

 

“Sounds like a solid plan.” Dean lifted back the comforter and sheets on the other side of the bed. There was only one bed. He didn’t think to get two. Angels didn’t sleep after all. He glanced over at the table under the window with its two modern chairs. They didn’t look comfortable, but they were cool in an artsy way. They were made of bright red plastic with vinyl covered cushions on the inside.

 

“I’ll move back to the table in just a second. The bed just seemed more comfortable after being in the car so much today.” Cas’ fingers weren't flying over the keys now. He seemed to just be reading.

 

“Stay there as long as you want.” Dean committed to the bed. At first he laid on his back and stared up at the ceiling, then he turned to his side and tried to read the page that Cas was staring at.

 

“You won’t get enough sleep if you keep trying to read what I’m already reading.” Cas scooched up the bed so his back was pressed more to the headboard. He angled the laptop a little so that it was harder for Dean to read it.

 

“Sorry. I’m tired, but I don’t feel like I can sleep yet.”

 

“Should I go research this in the car?” Cas moved a little like he didn’t need an answer.

 

Dean reached out and set a hand on Cas’ arm, stopping his progress. “No, stay.” Cas settled back and Dean let his hand slide off of him. “Maybe just talk to me for a little bit. I just need to wind down.”

 

“Sure,” Cas agreed then proceeded to say nothing.

 

Dean waited. They just stared at each other. Cas closed the lid to the laptop and set it aside. “Find anything useful in your research?” Dean tried.

 

“She was a seamstress, so maybe something clothing related, a favorite dress or a sewing machine maybe.” Cas eased himself down into the bed a little and onto his side. He was facing Dean now. Dean noticed that he’d unbuttoned not one but two buttons on his white shirt. Dean felt his face betraying his thoughts with a wide grin.

 

“That’s something.” Dean punched up his pillow a little. Being still would be difficult. He felt everything a little more keenly. His blood was flowing hot. His muscles seemed to want to both relax and spring into action. Words were failing him though. He kept thinking that if he just opened his mouth that maybe the secrets of the world might tumble out. Better to stay silent.

 

“I might be able to help you sleep if you’d like.” Cas had his fingers curled into the blanket. Dean wanted it to be okay to touch his hand, to be touched by those fingers. It was a fleeting thought, that added to the surprise of Cas moving his hand toward him. Cas settled his hand on Dean’s cheek.

 

“How?” Dean finally asked after the moment had gone on for nearly a year.

 

“Like how I did with Ketch.” He released Dean’s cheek then and lifted two fingers to Dean’s forehead. “If you’d like that.”

 

“I’d rather go to sleep naturally, if it’s all the same to you.” Cas let his hand fall back to his side of the bed. “Thought you were offering something else there for a minute.” Dean nearly kicked himself for the admission the moment that it came out.

 

“If I thought that would get you to sleep, I’d have offered.” Cas smiled and added. “Go to sleep.” He opened his laptop back up and went back to work. Dean kept staring at him, processing all of that. _How do I sleep now?_

 

* * *

 

 

Dean woke up to an empty bed and the smell of motel coffee brewing into a tiny carafe. “You trying to wake me up, Cas?”

 

“A little.” He was fiddling with something at the sink next to the coffee pot.

 

“What time is it?” Dean sat up and threw his legs out of the bed.

 

“A little after eight.” Cas poured some coffee and brought it over to Dean.

 

“That late?” Dean lifted his phone and checked the time. “Seriously?”

 

“You must have needed it.” Cas smiled and held out the coffee to Dean.

 

“You used your mojo on me, didn’t you?” Dean took the coffee.

 

“No, that was all you. Perhaps you needed to make up for not sleeping much this past week. I’m starting to think that this case was a bit of a blessing in disguise. Remind me to call Jody to thank her.”

 

Dean breathed in the steam of the coffee. Cas walked back to the sink and poured a second cup. Dean walked over to him and looked at Cas’ coffee. It seemed to be black, but there were several sugar packets scattered around. Dean set down his cup and took a small sip of Cas’ coffee. “You need cream in it.” It was incredibly sweet. Dean noted how many sugar packets Cas had apparently used and decided that this was something to remember.

 

“I usually just use sugar.” Cas still reached for the creamers.

 

“Add two of them, then test it.” Cas did what Dean said. Dean smiled and asked, “Does it taste like it needs more?”

 

“I don't know. It tastes better than usual. Why don’t you use cream and sugar?” Cas took another long sip and seemed happy with it.

 

“I’ve just grown use to having it without.” Dean picked his mug back up and started drinking it.

 

“You don’t have to deprive yourself.” Cas gulped down a bit of his coffee.

 

Dean smiled past his. “I’m not depriving myself. I’m just use to it this way.”

 

“Maybe you should try new things. You might like them.” Cas finished his coffee and set the mug on the counter. “Get dressed. I think I know where we need to go today.”

 

Dean took one last long swallow of coffee, and then said, “What, you don’t think this outfit works?” Dean did a funny little spin in his sweatpants.

 

“Maybe add a shirt, I guess.” Cas tipped his head to the side as if he was considering other options.

 

“No, shirtless or this outfit doesn’t work.” Dean laughed and moved off to his little pile of clothes that somehow got folded up and set on the dresser in the night.

 

“As you wish. I’m certainly not going to complain about how cold it is out there. I will be the picture of seasonal acceptance.”

 

“I’m getting dressed you dork.” Dean started pulling on the t-shirt, muttering, “Seasonal acceptance.” Cas just leaned back against the counter and watched him. Dean caught his eye as he was about to change pants. “You just gonna go all creeper over there?”

 

“I’ve got nothing better to do.” Dean rolled his eyes and picked up his jeans. He marched off to the bathroom. “I’ll be in the car,” Cas called out to him past the closed door.

 

Cas had taken the laptop out to the car, so all Dean had to really do was just leave. “You figure out where we need to go?”

 

“Breakfast. You haven’t eaten yet.” Cas pointed across the street toward a diner. “That one should do.”

 

“Surprised you didn’t just go there this morning and pick something up.”

 

“Wasn’t sure what you wanted. Sometimes you are difficult to read.”

 

“I was asleep. Pretty sure I wasn’t giving off any readable vibes.” Dean drove the short distance to the restaurant and parked the car.

 

As Cas got out he said, “When you talk in your sleep, I find that most informative.” They walked side by side into the diner.

 

“Okay, I’ll bite. What did I say?” The waitress behind the counter waved a hand out at all of the empty seats. Dean walked to the far end and slid into the booth. Cas took the side opposite him. It was odd not sitting on the same side. Dean had grown used to it. Cas even looked a little confused by the arrangement before he committed to the seat.

 

The waitress set down menus and water. “You boys want some coffee?”

 

“Sure, two,” Dean ordered for them both. She walked away to get the coffee and Dean looked over the menu.

 

Cas chose that moment to respond to the question. “Just my name. A few times.”

 

Dean tried to remember any particular dream. Though he couldn’t remember anything specific, he was sure that it had not been PG. Dreams featuring Cas rarely were. “How was that informative.”

 

Before he could answer the waitress was back, pouring coffee. “You boys know what you want?”

 

“I’ll take the lumberjack omelette.”

 

“Of course you will,” Cas mumbled.

 

“And you, sweetey?” The waitress turned her attention to Cas.

 

“The cowboy benedict.” He grinned across at Dean.

 

“Sounds good. I’ll get these to you all in two shakes.” She moved off to the order window and put the tag up.

 

Cas just stared at him for a time. “You want things to change, but you’re afraid that too much time has passed with things being like this.” Cas waved his fingers around in the space between them, then started emptying packet after packet of sugar into his mug. “I’m not going anywhere.”

 

“I didn’t think you were, at least not entirely.” Dean lifted his mug to his lips and took a tentative sip.

 

Cas’ brows came together as he contemplated the little metal creamer pot. “How much should I use?”

 

“Pour ‘til it looks like milk chocolate, then maybe a splash more,” Dean offered. Cas just stared at it. “Here, let me.” Dean poured and then gave the coffee a stir. It looked like too much milk to him, but it was similar to what was made back in the motel. “Taste it. Let me know if it’s okay.”

 

Cas lifted it to his lips and smiled past the brim. “It’s good.” He set the mug down on the table and asked, “You’re worried that I’m not going to stick around.”

 

“It isn’t that, per se. It’s more that I know you have duties in heaven. I don’t want to stand in the way of that.”

 

“You aren’t.” Cas sighed and leaned into the table a bit. “You’re allowed to ask me to stay. If you did, I would.”

 

“Can’t be my call. Jack needs what you guys have been doing in heaven. If you can get his power back, he can help heaven. That’s more important than Bunker Bonding.” Dean spent most of the moment staring out the window.

 

Cas’ hand slid across the table and settled over Dean’s.  He gave Dean’s hand a little squeeze. “Perhaps. It would be acceptable for you to ask though, whenever you finally felt like you could.”

 

“Maybe.” His phone buzzed. Dean and Cas both looked to it. Sam’s name was splashed on it. Dean answered, saying, “Heya Sammy.”

 

“Hey yourself. You sleep okay?”

 

“Like a baby,” Dean smiled.

 

“Then you must have slept like shit, because babies, you know they kind of don’t sleep.”

 

“Aw, poor Sammy didn’t get his beauty rest?” Dean’s tone was all mockery.

 

“Funny thing, they seem to miss you. I tried to move them to my room to sleep, and they did not want that one bit. I brought them back to your room and they were fine. Don’t be surprised when you find Claire, Jack, and I all over your space when you get home.”

 

“Don’t mess with my records. I just got them organized,” Dean said.

 

“Too late. Claire was already entertaining Jack and the babies with some Zepp.” Sam’s voice grew distant. “Yeah, talking to Dean and Cas.” His voice came back to the phone. “You all coming back tonight or tomorrow?”

 

“Tonight. This should be easy. Cas stayed up researching and has some leads.”

 

“Good, don’t feel like you have to rush. The kids are fine.” Sam laughed.

 

“It won’t be a rush. It’s just not complicated.”

 

“Okay. Well, let us know if you need anything. Claire’s more than ready to jump ship and help you all out. I’m pretty sure she’s not cut out for parenting.” Sam laughed then a voice came through, all muffled. “Stuff it, Sam.”

 

“Our breakfast is coming. Gonna hang up and let you deal with that.” They both laughed, said their goodbyes, and then Dean hung up the phone. The waitress slid their plates to them. “Cas?” Dean asked after getting a few bites in.

 

“Dean?”

 

Dean looked away and said, “When we get back,” he swallowed then continued, “I’d like you to stay.” He ate another bite, then another. “At least while the babies are there. I could really use the help.” He glanced back at Cas.

 

“Of course, Dean.”

 

* * *

 

 

It was an easy enough salt and burn. They found a very important dress, and they burned it. Easy peasy. They got on the road and were ten miles into the drive back, when Cas said, “We forgot the cribs.” They turned around and went back. Even with the extra time needed to drive out and back, they still managed to get on the road again by the late afternoon. They even had a good laugh about it.

 

Dean was feeling good. He was on his way back to the bunker, the most recent case was solved, the kids were fine, and Cas would stay. All told, it was a good day. He began humming Cas’ song.

 

Halfway home and Cas’ hand found its way back to the seat then Dean’s shoulder. His thumb did the little stroking thing that it had done before.

 

They didn’t talk on the way home, didn’t need to. It was warm and pleasant between them. It was as if they each knew what the other was thinking, and they were on the exact same page. Eventually, Dean made the turn onto their road. He was going to pull right on into the garage, maybe call Sam out to help them haul in the baby supplies. Before reaching the bunker, he came to a sudden halt. In the road, just ahead, was a little girl, with long waves of red hair. By the height of her, she was maybe three years old. She was standing stock still in the middle of the road. Dean got out and walked to her. Cas came to his side and held a hand out to arrest Dean’s progress. “Wait.”

 

“No,” Dean said. He went right up to the little girl. He got down into a crouch. “You okay?”

 

She looked like she was going to cry. “Are you my dad?”

 

“I’m Dean Winchester.” He reached out to her slowly. She let him take her hand.

 

“They said you’d take care of me.”

 

“Who did?” Cas asked.

 

She looked at Cas then and said, “They did.”

 

Dean turned to Cas and asked, “Nephilim?”

 

Cas replied, “Yes.”


	4. Let's Make It an Even Four or So

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this one is rather long, but I couldn't see a good place to break it really, so that's what you get. There is the tiniest bit of angst, but this is still a lot of fluffy stuff. Hope you all are enjoying it.

As soon as they came into the bunker she walked right up to Sam and took his hand. “Another one,” Sam had said. He stood awkwardly staring between them and the girl. The bassinets were on the table behind him. Dean immediately went to them to see how they were. Finding them sleeping, he returned his attention to Sam and the others.

 

Claire greeted their return with a smirk and a disdainful, “Finally. Was beginning to wonder if you were too old now for even the simple hunts.”

 

Dean walked up to her and hugged her. “Good to see you too.”

 

“Anytime, gramps.” She laughed into his shoulder and stepped back. “Hey, Cas.” He stepped toward her and seemed like he was going to hug her, but he stopped. It was still sometimes odd between them. Apparently, babysitting had softened Claire a little though, as she reached out to him and pulled him into a rib-crushing hug. “You know we hug right?”

 

“Wasn’t sure.” She let him go and just looked at him for a moment. “Hunters aren’t always comfortable with,” he broke out the air quotes, “PDA.”

 

Claire and Dean erupted in laughter. Dean said, “I feel like that was a dig at me.”

 

“Pretty sure it was,” Sam said.

 

To add to the moment, Jack walked right up to Cas and hugged him tight. “Welcome home, Dad.”

 

Dean noticed Cas’ eyes close a little and a wide smile bloom on his face. “Tell Dean that the babies are okay.”

 

Sam interrupted, “So are we just pretending that I’m not currently holding hands with yet another nephilim here?”

 

Dean said, “Pretty much. How were the babies?”

 

“Fine.” Sam bent down into a crouch. “And what’s your name?”

 

She looked at each of them then whispered, “Rebekah.”

 

“And who are your parents?” Sam was using his gentle interrogation voice. Paired with the puppy dog eyes of sympathy, Dean assumed that the answers would be flowing in no time.

 

He was wrong. Rebekah just stood there saying nothing. They all waited for a bit too long for something to happen. It didn’t. Thankfully, Jack helped break the silence. He took her other hand and  said, “You want to pick out a bedroom?” She nodded and let go of Sam’s hand and allowed Jack to lead the way.

 

Sam said, “Maybe the one next to your room, across from me.” Jack smiled at that.

 

They could hear him saying to her as he walked around the corner. “I’m sure you’ll like it here. They are a good family to choose.”

 

Sam waved them to the table and they all sat down. Dean felt his muscles tighten and rebel a little against sitting again. The spirit had thrown him around a little, and the few extra hours in the car didn't exactly do wonders for his body. Cas reached out to the back of his seat and let his arm linger there a moment before he grazed his fingers over the back of Dean’s neck. A gentle wave of graced rolled down his neck and eased his aches.

 

He glanced sideways at Cas. “Thanks.” Cas smiled and let his hand linger where it was.

 

“So tell us about the spirit. Do we need to send Claire in for clean-up?” Sam asked.

 

“Wow, Sam. One night on baby duty and this is what you become.”

 

Claire laughed. “I almost forgot what you two were like together.”

 

“Cas and I are professionals, Sam.” Dean wasn’t letting it go. “Besides, it was just a spirit. It was easy.”

 

Cas asked, “Find out anything more on the nephilim while we were gone?”

 

“Babies take up a lot of time,” Sam muttered.

 

Now Cas and Dean both laughed. ”So two hunters and a nephilim teen couldn’t handle babysitting and research.”

 

“In my defense, I haven’t been here that long.” Claire drummed the table with her fingers. “Sam and I were wondering about some things while you both were on vacation though.” She winked and continued, “Can any angel make a baby?”

 

Cas answered, “Yes.” He suddenly looked a little unhappy. Dean wondered if Cas still viewed human/angel relations as abominations. Truth be told, he had thought that Cas had gotten over that line of thinking with the arrival of Jack.

 

“Is there a way to do like an angel paternity test on them?” Claire asked.

 

Cas sighed, “I'm unaware of any spell that would help us with that. Tracking down nephilim and rogue angels was always a difficult thing.”

 

Dean asked, “Can you tell how many more are out there, like listen for them on angel radio?”

 

Cas looked at him steadily and said, “I'm not much of an angel anymore, Dean. However there aren't many of my kind left so I'm tolerated in heaven. I've been so disconnected that I had to be told about the dwindling number of angels, so I doubt that I have what is needed to pick up on the nephilim.”

 

“But you can tune into angel radio.” Dean nodded as if to encourage him.

 

“Nephilim don't communicate with each other in that way. Years of being hunted and killed for just being what they are taught them caution. I imagine that our nephilim have been taught the same caution.” With that he got up suddenly and said, “I'm going to check on Jack.” Then he left the room.

 

“What was that about?” Sam asked.

 

“Don't know. I'll ask him later,” Dean said. He stared after Cas though and thought about what they’d been through up to this point. He understood more than he let on.

 

* * *

 

 

Dean didn’t ask Cas about what was bothering him, and he certainly didn’t bring up tuning into angel radio. Doing that might be like listening to am radio out in the sticks. If one was lucky, they might catch an errant word or two over the static. It was surprising to Dean that Cas hadn’t known about the dwindling angel numbers. Now that he thought about it, Dean thought that it should have been very obvious. Then he said the thing about not being much of an angel anymore as if Dean would just understand that. He didn’t, but clearly that was something he had been expected to pick up on or something.

 

There were things that he did know, things he understood about Cas. He just didn’t know how to get the necessary conversations rolling.

 

So, instead of acknowledging what he didn’t know or understand and what he did know and understand, Dean was going with actual avoidance as a plan of action. Cas still spent a fair amount of time in Dean’s room. He also spent time on the laptop researching or pretending to research. Dean wasn’t sure. Dean figured that when he was ready, Cas would talk.

 

A week into the awkward, and Dean was starting to feel antsy. A second week passed and he was managing to pretend it was all fine. By the third week, everything seemed downright swell.

 

Late on a Thursday night, Dean found himself at the dinner table in the kitchen with Claire, Jack, and Sam. Cas said he was going to spend time with the babies before bed. Rebekah had already gone to sleep. She would be up with the sun and Sam. It had become their pattern. “We should get a dog,” Sam said, apropos to nothing. “For Rebekah.”

 

“Sure Sam, and who do you think will take care of it when we go on hunts?” Dean asked.

 

Claire laughed. “You actually think you have time for that?” She laughed again, and sounded like she might choke on her meal. Jack gave her a coupled of wacks on her back, and she continued, “Not sure if you’ve noticed, but you don’t have time for anything beyond childrearing here. It’s just a good thing that you haven’t gotten any more recently.”

 

Sam and Dean both knocked on the wooden table as if that little superstition would help one bit. “We could get some help from you all every now and then,” Dean offered.

 

“What, you mean Jody? Because I’m sitting like right here. I changed the diapers, so you must be referring to the rest of my wayward clan.” Claire laughed again. “Pretty sure Sam already tried that idea out.” She turned to Sam. “How’d that work out for you?”

 

“She sent you,” Sam said with a smile. “You tell me.” He popped a fry into his mouth with a smirk.

 

She lobbed a second fry at his head. Jack spoke up. “Hunting doesn’t seem to be a priority anymore. Besides, the babies need us.” He glanced at Sam and added, “And maybe we need a dog.”

 

“No dogs,” Dean said. He worried that he’d be outnumbered on this one. They all seemed to be working together with such synchronicity. They’d even been planning some sort of outing that Dean gave only half of his sleep addled attention to, so if they all decided that they wanted to add a dog to the mix, Dean was sure he’d be losing that battle. He only had logic to offer up, and sometime people didn’t care for that. “This isn’t a good place for dogs. Think about it.”

 

“Well, maybe it would be. You should just think about it. A kid should have a dog,” Sam said.

 

Dean wouldn't look at him. He was absolutely doing the sad face that worked on oh so many, Dean included. They were not getting a dog. He had to leave. He stood abruptly. “I’m going to go check on Cas.”

 

“Chicken,” Sam said under his breath. Dean let it go and marched right on out of that discussion. He heard Claire announce to Sam and Jack that they should play some poker. Jack let her know that he didn’t know what that was. Dean smiled and rounded the corner to his room.

 

It was quiet, but the sounds of the babies gurgling happily floated down the hall to him. It made Dean feel a pleasant warmth in his chest. Cas was speaking too. His tone was encouraging. Dean’s door was open as he walked to it. Lying face down on the floor in just slacks and his white button up was Cas, practically naked. He had the two babies on the floor in the same position. He had spread out the big blue blanket on the floor first. Dean was secretly happy for that. Floors are germy.

 

Dean leaned into the door jam and watched. “Good job, Ellie. See if you can roll over,” Cas encouraged. It was cute. Dean found himself grinning far too widely. “Okay, Samuel, don’t let Ellie beat you. You can roll over too.”

 

“Did she roll over,” Dean asked in shock. “Did I miss it?”

 

Cas stiffened and rolled over to face Dean. “Only a little. Sorry. I should have informed you. I know these milestones are important.”

 

Dean committed to the room and came down to a crouch near them. The babies were still flexing and flailing a little on the floor. “What’re you doing with them?” Dean reached out and gave Ellie’s back a gentle rub.

 

“Tummy time.” Dean laughed, and Cas explained, “It’s something that the baby websites encourage. It supposedly will help them build up their core and enable them to roll over and crawl.”

 

Cas looked proud, and Dean liked the turnaround so much that he was determined to encourage it at all costs. “So show me how we do this.”

 

Cas glanced at the babies then at Dean and said, “Not much to show. This is literally it.”

 

“So you were just on your stomach for the fun of it?” Dean laughed.

 

“I suppose I was.” Cas laughed too. “I thought that they might benefit from an example, but in the end, it was just fun to see the world from their perspective.”

 

Dean came down to the floor and laid at Cas’ side. He looked toward Ellie who had her head turned toward him. She was pressing on the floor in what looked like an effort toward a push up. Dean looked past her to the space under his bed and realized that he needed to clear that space of the boxes and items stored there if the babies were going to start crawling. He looked up to his closet and thought that maybe he could make room. “If they start crawling, this space is going to be a nightmare.”

 

He turned his face toward Cas. They were close, and the realization of that nearly sucked the air right out of Dean’s lungs. “I know you already have a plan. I saw you glance at the weapons and porn box and then the high shelf.”

 

“It’s more than stashing all that away. It’s the drawers and the plugs and the sharp corners too. We might need to get some baby gates to keep them out of dangerous spaces.” Dean was trying to imagine where they could freely roam and be safe.

 

“They have powers, and if they are anything like Jack, they are practically indestructible.” Cas’ hand slid along the space between them and found Dean's own. His fingers curled into Dean’s hand. “You’ve been avoiding me. I’m sorry.”

 

Dean struggled for a moment to make the conversational shift. He propped his head on his arm. “I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

 

“I make myself uncomfortable. A lot has happened. I suppose I’ll never be fully able to shed the mistakes of the past.” Cas shifted a bit then got up, letting Dean’s hand go as he did.

 

Dean felt the emptiness immediately. He wondered when it was that he’d become so dependant on Cas to fill the emptiness that sometimes seemed to surround him. Dean sat up and watched Cas scoop up Samuel, then settle him in the bassinet. Next he scooped up Ellie and deposited her in the other. The cribs were built, but they were in the room across the hall, and neither of them were quite ready for the babies to sleep in there just yet. When he finished settling the babies, he slid down to the space next to Dean.

 

They sat for a time, backs pressed to the bedside, watching the babies drift off to sleep. “I don’t know what we’d do without you, Cas.”

 

“You’d be fine. Most of your life you did just fine without me hovering over your shoulder.” Cas’ face was painted with a sad little smile.

 

“Getting by is not the same as doing fine.” Dean let his hand find Cas’. Neither of them looked down at the connection that was made. Dean thought about the years of raising Sam, and how different this was. Then he spoke to it, thinking that it might make Cas see just how different things were now. “Some nights, I couldn’t get Sam to sleep. He was a good baby, but we lived in motels. Sometimes it was loud. Sometimes it was cold. Sometimes my dad would be drunk. I did what I could.”

 

“You did great. Sam turned out wonderful because of you.” Cas squeezed his hand a little.

 

“I got by. I was a kid. I didn’t know squat about raising a baby. When it came time to get him eating solids, I started him on peas. You know how much he hated peas? So much, let me tell you. It was like the freaking Exorcist.”

 

Cas looked at him with a tilt to his head, then said, “The movie?”

 

“Yeah.” Dean looked down at his lap and smiled. “He loved sweet potatoes and carrots though. I worried that I wasn’t giving him enough nutrition. Dad seemed to be unconcerned. I ended up stealing some things, mostly baby food. Some places we’d stop at would have food kitchens that would give out baby items. I’d stock up as much as they’d let me. Couldn’t do too much, because they’d send out the law to see if we were in a bad situation. We were, but…”

 

“I sometimes wish I could have words with your father.” Dean glanced at Cas. “I suppose that he didn’t realize just how much you needed from him.”

 

“He didn’t. He did the best he could with what the universe gave to him. I sometimes think that he stopped being himself after mom died. He use to be soft, and kind to us when we were young. Or maybe I just don’t remember. If the universe conspired to bring him and mom together, maybe it also changed him so that I’d change and Sam would change. You know, cosmic manipulations times ten.”

 

“Maybe. It made you kind. It made you good.” Cas shifted a little and it brought him closer to Dean. He glanced at the babies. They were both sleeping. “They deserve better than me, so I’m glad they have you.”

 

“Like I said before, I don’t know what we’d do without you.”

 

“You’d be fine.”

 

“I wouldn’t. Trust me on this. I know. I did the whole Casless existence thing. It pretty much sucked. Jack brought you back though, and we are all better off for it. So, yeah, I wouldn’t be fine. I’d be the opposite of fine, and I’d like it very much if you stopped disagreeing with me on that score.” Dean shifted a bit and threaded their fingers together. Apparently they were now the kind of buddies that held hands. He was fine with that. He was more than fine with that. He was actually comfortable with completely owning this and claiming this on a near regular basis.

 

Instead of replying to Dean’s heartfelt declaration, Cas said, “I might try giving them baby food this week. You think I should avoid peas?”

 

Dean let his head fall to his chest. He let out a little gasp of a laugh. “This,” he waved his free hand up in the space between them, “this is why I love you.”

 

Cas just stared at him for a moment before saying. “Because I make baby feeding plans?”

 

“Yes.” Dean leaned in and settled his head on Cas’ shoulder saying, “And maybe for everything else too.”

 

* * *

 

 

In the morning, the babies and Cas were out of the room. Dean stretched out slowly, feeling his body crackle in a satisfying way. He got up and wandered toward the smell of coffee in the kitchen. Rebekah was eating a very full bowl of cereal. Jack had a baby strapped to his chest in a funny little backpack looking thing. Cas came in next with another baby and the same funny backpack.

 

“So, we going backpacking with babies? Thought you all were just going to the park.” Dean asked as he took a seat next to Rebekah. She passed him the cereal. “Thanks.” Dean winked at her and she smiled back. Sam came in next and sat across from them.

 

“Sam ordered them,” Jack said.

 

Sam rubbed the sleep from his eyes. “They look good. Did you all have trouble putting them on?”

 

Cas came to the table. “It's a two person job.” He was rocking back and forth. Samuel's chubby little baby legs wiggled with delight and occasionally kicked at Castiel's stomach with enthusiasm.

 

“So what's this?” Dean meant to ask about the  purpose of the packs.

 

“They're Baby Bjorn's baby packs.” Cas spun around and Samuel giggled. That was new. They all stared at little Samuel.

 

“Spin again. See if he does that again,” Dean said.

 

Cas spun. Samuel giggled again. “You like that?” Cas tipped his chin down closer to Samuel.

 

Jack started spinning with Ellie. She didn't giggle. “She doesn't like this, I think,” Jack said.

 

“So I guess we know who the thrill junkie is.” Dean turned to Rebekah. “You next?”

 

“No,” she replied in her usual concise way.

 

Claire came in then and bee lined right to the coffee. “I see we now wear the latest fashion, babies.” She pulled down a mug and filled it. She started drinking it black.

 

Cas walked to the counter and picked up the sugar jar. “Here.” He took the mug from her and set it on the counter. He began spooning sugar into the mug. He went to the fridge next and got the milk.

 

“Hey, Cas, who said I wanted all that in my coffee?”

 

Cas’ whole face wrinkled up as he said, “No one your age drinks coffee like that. Black coffee is bitter, like the people who drink it.”

 

“Hey, I am not bitter,” Dean whined.

 

“You've been adding sugar. I saw you.” Cas handed the mug back to Claire. “Drink up.” Cas came back to the table and stood near Dean's seat.

 

“Didn't realize you put so much stock in how people drink their coffee,” Dean said.

 

“My observations are based on recent experiences.”

 

Sam interrupted the moment. “Are we going to the park today, Rebekah?”

 

Her face seemed to light up. Sam thought that the kids needed fresh air and a dog. Dean conceded to the fresh air. The baby packs gave Dean the impression that everyone was planning to bring the babies to the park too. “You do get that you have to drive to the park, right?” Dean asked.

 

“Well, yeah. Not like we live next to a park,” Sam said.

 

“And am I to presume that you have an appropriate booster seat for Rebekah and car seats for Samuel and Ellie?” Dean asked, assuming that the answer would be a rather dejected no. He was already considering the drive to the Smith Center to pick up the necessary booster seat for Rebekah.

 

“Of course I have the appropriate seats. I ordered them at the same time as the Baby Bjorns,” Sam said as he leaned back in his seat, all sorts of smug. “I might just order some other things that we need too.”

 

Dean leveled a gaze at him as he said, “Luckily what you’re thinking of can’t be ordered online.”

 

“Is that a challenge?” Sam looked like he was ready to prove Dean every kind of wrong, and Dean felt the worry wash over him as he considered the many foo-foo dogs Sam could maybe order online. “You do know that I can order anything online, right?”

 

“Cas, let’s check out the seats. I don’t trust this one with the installation.” Dean hooked a thumb over his shoulder at Sam as he rushed up and out the door, leaving his half-eaten breakfast on the table.

 

He could hear the laughter behind him and Sam saying, “Cas, I don’t know how you put up with him.”

 

“He’s a challenge.”

 

Dean was in the garage for some minutes before Cas joined him. Samuel was now sleeping comfortably in his Baby Bjorn, having apparently kicked Cas enough for one day. “Betrayal,” Dean said as he pointed a finger at Cas.

 

Cas shrugged. “What’d I do this time?”

 

“I’m not a challenge,” Dean said. “I’m easy like Sunday morning.”

 

“Clearly I was wrong, Dean. You are always easy like Sunday morning. You never make things even the slightest bit difficult.” Cas came up to his side next to the Impala. “We should get a mini-van.”

 

“No!” Dean set a palm on the side of the Impala and said, “He didn’t mean it Baby. He just doesn’t think sometimes.”

 

Cas rolled his eyes. “We will have to take two cars at this point. A mini-van makes more practical sense.”

 

“LaLaLaLaLaLaLa,” Dean stuffed his fingers in his ears.

 

“Sh.” Cas pointedly glanced down at Samuel against his chest. Dean stopped making his nonsense noises. “I suppose this is one of those times when you are not a challenge.”

 

Dean just grinned. He opened the back seat and saw that Sam had set up the two baby seats in the back. There wasn’t a booster seat there. “Where’s Rebekah going to ride?”

 

“Like I said, we need to take two cars.” Cas pointed over to the other side of the garage to an ugly old Buick. Dean actually groaned and walked over to it. He peered in the back window.

 

“I’m not riding in this car,” he said then added, “ever.”

 

“We’re driving the babies in the Impala. Sam, Claire, Jack and Rebekah will be in the Buick. I don’t think that we’ll be there as long as them. The babies will have enough park time before they even get there.”

 

“So we’ll come back early then?” Dean asked with a waggle to his eyebrows added for good measure. Then he realized that he was implying a whole lot more than he intended.

 

“Yes. I have some things we need to talk about.” Cas didn’t seem to notice Dean’s implications, and his response sucked some of the wind out of Dean’s sails anyway.

 

“We could talk now.” Dean edged closer to him.

 

“No, we’d just be interrupted.”

 

Dean leaned against the Buick, trying to look calm. “Now you got me wondering. Any hints?”

 

Cas leaned in close to Dean’s ear, Samuel sleeping pleasantly between them. “You’re projecting.”

 

“Huh?”

 

Cas smiled at him, still so close. “One could say, you are rather easy to read in this moment. It’s not what we need to discuss though. I need to discuss a promise that I need to break.”

 

Everyone was showing up now. Of course. Sam had Rebekah up on his shoulders, and Claire was worriedly telling him to watch out for her head as they entered the garage. “Load ‘em up, Dean. Unless you think my baby seat installation is not up to snuff.” Sam sounded just a little annoyed.

 

“You done good.” Dean shielded his eyes and looked up at Rebekah. “How’s the air up there?”

 

She laughed. “You’re funny.”

 

“See, Sam, some people think I’m funny. Thanks princess.” Dean gave her a little bow. Sam lifted her down to the floor and waved her to the car. Jack was unstrapping Ellie from his chest. “You need a hand there, Jack.”

 

“Yes, this is complicated.” Dean lifted Ellie and the whole Baby Bjorn off of Jack. Cas was on the other side of the Impala taking care of his baby situation all on his own.

 

“I gotta run back to my room and do a quick change. You got this?” Dean asked Cas.

 

“Go change. We'll be ready when you get back.”

 

It took awhile for them to pack the cars and get the babies ready. This gave Dean plenty of time to change and such. Dean was learning that everything takes longer with kids. As Dean got in the car he asked, “Did we pack the formula and the diaper bag?”

 

“I took care of all of that last night. It’s in the back seat. The bottles have water in them, and when we need them, we just have to mix in the formula.”

 

“It won’t be warm enough.”

 

“They’ll survive.” Cas put on his seatbelt. Ellie was waving her hands around in the back seat. Samuel looked tired, but awake.

 

* * *

 

 

The day was full and filled with joy and sunshine. Lovewell Park was a bit of a drive. Dean had worried about what the day would feel like with two babies cooped up in a car for so long. It turned out fine though, and by the time they all poured out of the car, the beauty of the place made up for the journey. There was a bit of water and rich green grasses. Rebekah was given an excess of attention, and the babies gurgled and smiled the day away. By midday, they opened up the packages of food, and had a rather large meal on one of the park’s tables.

 

“So, I maybe got us some inflatable rafts to take out on the water. They have a swim beach over there.” Sam gestured off to the other end of the park.

 

“Have fun with that,” Dean said with a smile. “Pretty sure the babies are gonna do the napping thing here after the meal.”

 

“Maybe. We’ll drag the beach stuff over so you two can sit on the sand, get your toes all gritty and work your way through the beer.” Sam clapped Dean on the back and headed to the car without waiting for approval. Claire followed him.

 

“Not a bad day at all,” Dean said, lifting his bottle of beer and angling it toward Cas. A little breeze blew past them. Cas lifted his beer and tinked it with Dean’s.

 

“Not bad at all.” Cas got up and started cleaning the food off of the table. “Jack, Rebekah, come help with the clean up.” He called over his shoulder to them.

 

Jack was throwing a frisbee to Rebekah and talking with her about god knows what. Dean just felt like this was every fool-headed fantasy life he never thought he’d have. Here he was with his family, blood and otherwise, eating food and drinking beer like there was nothing wrong in the world. And there really wasn’t much wrong in the world anymore, and they’d earned this respite. It felt good, so good that he worried just a little that something would change it.

 

“Did Sam say it was time to get the boats out?” Jack asked as he practically bounced to the table.

 

“Yes. He and Claire are getting everything over to the beach.” Dean started packaging up some of the larger containers, moving them into the big cooler that they brought. “I didn’t realize what I was signing up for with this park trip. You all have been planning quite a lot.”

 

“Yeah, Sam said it was good for us. He said that you thought that the best thing in the world was to sit on a beach somewhere drinking a beer with your family,” Jack offered up as he gathered the used plates and cups to toss in the garbage.

 

“Did he now. Seems I won’t have any secrets left.” Dean laughed. He leaned down to check on Samuel who was now falling asleep in his carseat. Dean was feeling pretty happy with Sam’s choice in carseats. Having the thing act as a makeshift bed right now was a good thing.

 

When they finished, they headed toward the beach. Dean and Cas walked side by side carrying the babies. Sam ran back to help with the carrying while Claire worked on blowing up the first raft. They found her sitting on the blanket with the nozzle in her mouth and her cheeks puffed up to the max.

 

“This is a good spot. Just enough shade to keep us from burning,” Cas said. He set Ellie and the carseat under the pop-up umbrella, and adjusted the little hood over her seat. Dean did the same and then took a seat on the giant blanket that was spread out on the sand.

 

Sam came back and plopped down on the blanket at Dean’s side. “How long do you think it’ll be before Claire realizes that she can use the air compressor in the car to fill the boats?”

 

“Are you fu…” Claire stopped when her eyes caught Rebekah’s. “I mean, seriously?”

 

Cas got up. “Here, let’s go fill them up with the car.” He turned to Sam. “We were all quietly amused by her efforts you know.”

 

“Rude.” Claire got up though and carried her half inflated boat to the car.

 

Jack and Rebekah were already working on a sand mound, not a castle. Sam leaned in close to Dean and gave his arm a little bump of friendliness. “This like you imagined? Sand in your toes, beer in your hand.”

 

Dean held out his empty hands. “Not seeing a beer.”

 

Sam reached into the cooler and passed him one, popping the cap off of it as he did so. “That better?”

 

“Yeah,” Dean said as he tipped the bottle to his mouth. “All of this is pretty damn near perfect.”

 

“Near?” Of course Sam honed in on that one word.

 

“I keep thinking something will shift or go wrong. Nothing this good ever lasts.”

 

“Maybe this time it does last. Maybe this time the universe will finally feel satisfied.”

 

“Maybe.” Dean wedged his bottle into the sand and started taking off his shoes. “I got my beer. Maybe I should actually get my toes sandy.”

 

“Maybe you should. Seems like it’s high time we start enjoying good things.” Sam leaned back on his elbows. “I’m gonna take them all out on the water, give you and Cas some time to talk.”

 

Dean looked at him sideways. “You know something I don’t?”

 

“He’s worried about Jack.” Sam nodded toward Jack, who didn’t look up with the mentioning of his name. Dean assumed that with the loss of power, Jack had lost some of his extra angel level hearing.

 

“He’s doing great. What’s there to worry about?”

 

“Let him tell you. He’s worried that you won’t be happy with his decision.”

 

Dean glanced back toward Cas and Claire. They looked like they were struggling with the boat back at the car. It was a funny little spectacle that made Dean warm and somehow even happier. “Long as he doesn’t do anything stupid.”

 

“Like what?” Sam twisted a little to face him and also got a full vision of Cas and Claire and the boat struggle. “Oh, god. They’re too much.”

 

“I know. It’s like they lack regular people logic. Why is Claire holding the boat on her head?”

 

“This is a mystery. Cas could tell her to set it down, but apparently he thinks that this is how things should be,” Sam said.

 

“He said he’d stay to help with the babies. I know it was wrong to ask him for that, but I did. I need him to stay, Sam.”

 

Sam reached out and set a hand on Dean’s knee. “He won’t be gone long, and Jack needs this.”

 

“I know.”

 

“Let him tell you though. It wasn’t my place to say anything.”

 

Dean glanced back at Cas again and said, “I’m glad you did. It’ll help me figure out my game face, so he doesn’t feel bad about this.”

 

* * *

 

 

They laid on the beach together, pants rucked up to their knees. Dean thought he might actually get some color today. Cas had his head on Dean’s stomach as he read from a tattered old novel. The day passed lazily. And they didn’t talk about Cas leaving. Dean took the time to note Jack’s demeanor. He seemed tired at times, and energetic at others. He wondered if Cas was seeing something deeper, but he was afraid to ask.

 

Afternoon rolled on into early evening, and they packed up to go. The drive was quiet for a time, then the babies woke up and started wailing at full volume in the back seat. “Guess they don’t like being confined now,” Dean said.

 

“Well, they did get a ton of sleep during the afternoon nap.” Dean pulled over and Cas got out. “I could sit between them and attempt entertainment.”

 

Dean laughed, “What will that entail?”

 

“Faces. I’m pretty sure that’s all I’m good for.” Cas got himself, somehow wedged into the space between the two carseats. It couldn’t have been comfortable. Dean pulled back onto the road. The babies calmed down eventually. Cas went through a vast array of ‘faces’ and a hastily made bottle for each. Dean hoped that when they got home, that maybe they’d feel happy again.

 

The drive felt quite long. It was only about an hour from where they had parked to home, but when babies cry, everything feels infinite. When they finally pulled into the garage, Cas was quick to undo the seatbelts, and free them. Dean reached in and removed Ellie from her restraints. Sam’s car pulled in next  to them. “You all okay?” Sam asked.

 

“Will be if you guys can handle the unloading. The babies are not happy.” Dean started to walk into the bunker.

 

“We got it,” Sam called after him.

 

Dean could feel Cas behind him. “I’m thinking this one has a wet diaper. How’s yours?”

 

“Same,” Cas said. They got to Dean’s room and did the quick change. Dean decided to get Ellie into some fresh clothes, so Cas did the same for Samuel. They weren’t crying, but there was an air of discontent floating around them. “Sam told you about my plans?”

 

“Not really.” Dean was rocking Ellie against his chest. “He told me that you had plans though and that I wouldn’t like them.”

 

“I’ve been worried about it. I told you that I might need to break a promise.”

 

“Yeah, I’ve been worried about that,” Dean admitted. “I trust you though, so just tell me what you need.”

 

Cas let out a bit of air, like he’d been holding his breath with all of his worrying. “I need to take Jack back to heaven. They were making progress with his healing. Lucifer left him with some of his grace, but not much. He’s more human, but not so human that he can be comfortable. I want him to stop hurting.”

 

“He’s hurting?” Dean tipped his head to really look at Cas.

 

“Yes. He won’t admit it. He doesn’t want to leave here. His time with the other nephilim has been a source of joy for him, but if he doesn’t finish the healing, he’ll never feel anything but this constant ache, this sense of not being whole.”

 

“It’s what you went through? That’s how you know isn’t it?” Dean reached out and cupped Cas’ cheek in his hand.

 

“It is.” Cas leaned into the touch. “I don’t think that it will be more than a week, but it could be.”

 

“Wait, we’re just talking a week?” Dean’s hand dropped. “I seriously thought you were going to be gone for months.”

 

“Oh,” Cas looked surprised, eyebrows raised just a little. “I take it that you find this tolerable.”

 

“Geesh, Cas. It’s nothing. A week is literally nothing. I can’t believe you. I really thought I was about to embark on single fatherhood here.”

 

“You have Sam and Claire.”

 

“Not the same. Go do your week.” Dean looked around the room. “Maybe not tonight though, unless you think Jack needs the healing to start right away.” Dean thought about what he was saying. If Jack was hurting, he didn’t want that. “I think tonight is going to be rough, but Jack is more important.”

 

“I don’t think that he would want to go tonight. The day at the park took a lot out of all of us.” Cas was moving in a rocking motion, the baby’s face pressed to his shoulder.

 

“Then you’ll stay tonight?”

 

“Of course.” Cas reached out and brushed his fingers through Dean’s hair. “And this is why I love you.”

 

“Because I’m a giant baby that doesn’t communicate properly.”

 

“No.” But Cas didn’t elaborate, and Dean didn’t ask him to.

 

\---

 

They finally settled in for the night many hours later. The babies didn’t want to sleep, and Dean feared that their schedules were now in complete disarray. They were restless, and not still enough for Dean’s liking. It wasn’t much of a shock that at 3:00 am they both started wailing.

 

“I’m up. I’m up.” Dean practically shot out of bed. Cas was already stooping down to one of the babies. “I’ll go warm the bottles.”

 

Dean stumbled out into the hall toward the kitchen. The floors were cold. He made the bottles in near record time and came back to the room. They fed the babies, who seemed to drink begrudgingly. When the bottles were done, they just didn’t seem happy. They squirmed and flailed about. “I wonder if they’re teething,” Cas mused.

 

“Maybe. If they’re developing, that would make sense.” Dean checked Ellie’s mouth a little. “Doesn’t feel like there’s any teeth coming in there though.” Dean set her on the bed and got out the Baby Bjorns. “Here.” He passed one to Cas. “Let’s take them out for a walk. Maybe the night air will do them some good.”

 

“It’ll likely just wake them up more.” Cas still put on the pack and got Samuel into it. Then he helped Dean with his.

 

“I don’t get how you can do yours so easily.”

 

“I practiced.” Cas smiled. They got their shoes on, and headed out of the bunker.

 

The night sky was something to be appreciated. There were so many stars out. They walked up the driveway with no destination in mind. The babies started whimpering. “This isn’t helping.”

 

Cas put a hand in front of Dean to stop him. “Something’s wrong.”

 

Dean had a gun in his pants pocket. Cas let his angel blade manifest. “What is it?”

 

A figure appeared on the road in front of them. It was striding toward them. Cas reached behind his back and undid the Baby Bjorn. Impressively, he removed the pack and handed it to Dean as he stepped fully in front of him. “Take them home.” Dean was frozen for a moment. “Dean!”

 

Dean started moving backwards toward the bunker. The being spoke. “Don’t leave. I am not here to harm either of you.”

 

“Who are you?” Cas gritted out.

 

“I’m E’brem. I’ve come to let you know that I’ve claimed Hell. I’m the new king.” He stopped moving toward them. Dean had also stopped moving, though he knew that he should be making the trip back to the bunker a quick one.

 

“Why are you here?” Cas asked.

 

“I just told you. It’s a little informational visit.” E’brem spread out his arms wide at his sides.

 

“Yes, but why?” Cas wasn’t letting his guard down.

 

“I’ve heard of you lot. You are better allies than enemies. I just wanted to, shall we say, keep my enemies close.”

 

“Go away,” Cas said.

 

“Oh, now, you don’t want to make an actual enemy of me. I’m certainly going to be far more useful to you as a friend.”

 

Dean asked, “What if we’ve had enough Hell friends?”

 

“I could twist your arms, or someone else’s arms that you care about.” He smiled big and toothy. “I don’t want anything from you. I just want you to let me do what I do without interference.”

 

“They just keep churning ‘em out dumber and dumber down there, don’t they, Cas?” Dean said.

 

Ellie started crying at this moment, and Cas said, “Dean, take them back.”

 

Dean started to move, then E’brem was snapped to his side. “Nephilim?” Dean moved back, and Cas got between them.

 

“I said leave,” Cas seemed to puff up as he said it.

 

“You’ve got two. You could spare one.” E’brem clearly didn’t know the danger that he was stepping into with that comment, but neither did Dean or Cas. Samuel started crying then too. E’brem was a mystery.

 

The air around them became electric then, and without warning two figures appeared out of the night. They were two small, dark skinned boys with white hair full and natural, forming almost a halo around their heads.

 

“What the hell?” E’brem said, hand still outstretched toward Dean and the babies.

 

The boys raised their hands in a synchronized motion. All at once, both seemed to shoot out a wave of golden energy. Dean had seen this before from Jack. “More nephilim,” Dean whispered. The energy hit E’brem and a moment later he was gone.

 

The boys lowered their arms and stared at Cas then Dean. “Thank you,” Cas said.

 

The boys nodded. Dean moved closer “I'm Dean and this is Cas.”

 

They both just continued to stare. Cas reached out a hand to show that his blade was gone. “Do you have names?”

 

They both spoke simultaneously, “We are Phobos and Deimos, though not the first of those names.”

 

“Well, whoever named you certainly set you all up for some deep expectations,” Dean said.

 

“Our father was paying tribute to the gods of old,” they both replied in sync again. It was off putting.

 

“Don't suppose you want to share your father's name while we're on the subject?” Dean asked.

 

They stared at Dean in silence. Cas finally spoke, “It hardly matters. Come with us, and we'll make up a room for you both. Welcome to the family.” The boys looked at each other in silent communication, then followed Cas and Dean into the bunker.


	5. Stayin' Alive

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that I took so long to update. I've been in the hospital and such, and just needed to heal up a bit first. Thanks for your patience.

Dean sat across from the twins at the breakfast table. They ate in sync. It didn’t bother him until they started syncing up with him, which they were doing right now. “Knock that off,” he said as he set his spoon back in his bowl. They did the same, but then they looked at each other, picked their spoons back up, and continued eating. Cas came to the table and sat next to him, all close and warm. “Sam mind the baby duty today?” Dean asked.

 

“He seemed to be fine with it. Jack and Claire are helping. It’s not really so much work, and Rebekah is easy too.” Cas lifted the mug of coffee to his lips. It had been just over a week since the twins joined them, and Dean had thought that maybe they could work with them. They’d had no luck uncovering any answers about their parentage or if there were a bunch of angel parents out their just shirking their duties. 

 

The bunker was now a place of duties and routines. With so many children to tend to, it had to be. Dean and Cas still worked primarily with the babies, while Claire, Jack, and Sam divvied up the care for the older kids. Dean and Cas also took on the general cleaning and upkeep of the bunker. The others rotated in and out of research mode. Sam and Dean were the ones primarily tasked with food acquisition. And all other tasks just got done when they got done. Dean felt like they’d exhausted most of the paths on the research front, so he didn’t even bother to participate in that most days.

 

Entertainment was something of a challenge for children that were so varied in their ages. Taking them all to the park seemed far less doable now, with two more added to the mix. Jack seemed to have a knack for entertaining the kids. He said it came from his time in the other world with Mary. Some days they’d dance in the spare room or make paper airplanes. Jack read a book on origami, and started showing the kids how to fold intricate things. Cas even got involved, and within a few short days, the war room table was covered with creatures and shapes that were surprisingly intricate. 

 

The beginning of an idea formed in Dean’s head when he first saw the little origami figures. The idea solidified on the night when Jack was making shadow puppets for the kids in the hall. The twins and Rebekah watched with delight as Jack cast figures onto the far wall, using a flashlight propped up on some books. The images, like with the origami, were also surprisingly intricate. It was pretty clear that the shadows were being created by more than just clever hand placement in front of a light. The scene that Jack made had dinosaurs tromping through high grass. Dean tried to imagine how Jack could do that with just two hands.  _ He couldn’t _ is what Dean surmised.

 

Then Rebekah made shadow puppets of her own. Her images were also complex. She had somehow made a city full of skyscrapers. Dean looked for buildings that he would recognize, but had no luck. At one point, the scene focused on a single building and a small child scurrying down the side to the ground. 

 

The twins worked together. Their shadows showed war. Rebekah reached out to one of them and set her hand gently on his shoulder. The scene changed to dogs frolicking in a field. “I’m not afraid,” she whispered to them, adding, “Just sad.”

 

Phobos stared deep into her eyes. Dean assumed it was Phobos. He’d done his best to look for tells that each had to showcase their differences. Phobos had a more stiff manner than his brother. And occasionally, Dean thought he saw glints of gold in his otherwise pale white halo of hair. Phobos spoke to Rebekah, “Everyone is afraid. I always feel it. It is why we are here. It is why, even without doing a thing, some of us have been hunted. It is okay to be afraid. Fear keeps us safe.”

 

It was more than Dean had heard from the twins since they’d arrived. Rebekah even spoke more, so long as the topic was superficial or involved Sam. He was her clear favorite. Dean kept quiet and watched as Jack made some of the shapes he’d seen Phobos and Deimos make. The images of war rolled along on the wall.  _ Good boy, Jack, _ Dean thought at him. It was important to get what information they could in whatever manner they could.

 

Phobos and Deimos moved their hands in front of the the light and contributed to the scene. They added heaven and hell to the scene. Deimos came right up to the light and held the edge of his hand close to it. The light turned a little red. Phobos moved in front of his brother and folded his hands in a complicated manner. He held them before the light, and Dean saw a figure form, a dark face with red eyes. Phobos nodded to Jack and said, “Arms.”

 

Jack asked, “Like this?” He ducked down in front of Phobos and added his arms. Rebekah without being asked, moved in front of Jack and did the same. They gave the body an almost spider-like appearance. 

 

Dean watched as they all stood still in the hall, staring at their creation. Eventually, Phobos dropped his hands to his sides. He turned to the end of the hall, toward Dean. A lone tear snaked down his cheek. He swiped at it. Dean stepped to him and came down into a crouch. “Is there anything I can do to help?” he asked.

 

Phobos stood still and faced him. Deimos came to his side. He answered for his brother. “Being here has been good for us both. There is nothing more you can do.” Dean reached out to Phobos and Deimos both and let his hand settle lightly on their shoulders.

 

“I suppose you’ll tell me if that changes?” It was a question, delivered with quiet sincerity. 

 

Rebekah stood behind them, holding Jack’s hand. “We are all grateful to be here,” she said.

 

Dean stood and gave her a small smile. “And we’re glad you came to us too.” Feeling that he was intruding, he turned then and left the hall. The moment had lingered in his thoughts though. He felt that they had shown key moments from their past. He felt certain that there was something to the images, tales that they could not tell with words.

 

So he let a few days pass before he told Cas that he wanted to try giving the twins some more artistic outlets, like coloring. They’d decided that it would be best to work with just the two of them rather than add Rebekah into the mix. This was how they ended up sitting together in the kitchen, eating cereal with a bit too much synchronicity.

 

Cas drank slowly from his cup of coffee. Dean noticed that he’d changed his clothing today. He was wearing a dark green t-shirt with dark jeans. He’d started wearing things that were not his usual get up, and Dean wondered if he should question it. He worried about questioning anything that Cas did though, since it might lead to a reminder that Cas had plans that involved leaving. 

 

In that regard, Dean wondered if he was being selfish as he avoided the questions. After all, Cas had said that Jack was suffering and maybe even in pain. Dean had subtly looked into that. And though Jack looked tired from time to time, when Sam had asked him how he was feeling, his answer was, “Great!” Not a simple fine, but an actual enthusiastic great. So Dean took that for what it was worth.

 

Cas hadn’t mentioned going back to heaven, and Jack had seemed fine or great rather, so Dean felt no need to push for a conversation that would lead to anyone leaving. Instead of questions, Dean let the silence linger as they each ate. Dean finished off the last bite and leaned back from the table a little. Cas was watching him over the rim of his mug. Dean gave him a half grin and set a hand on his knee under the table. “You put enough cream and sugar in there?” It was a safe question.

 

“Of course.” Cas set down the near empty mug. “I’ve learned to enjoy the finer things.”

 

“Like coffee?” Dean asked.

 

“Exactly, and other things.”

 

Dean cocked up an eyebrow and dared to ask, “Oh, like what?”

 

Cas shrugged and said, “Memory Foam mattresses and quiet moments with loved ones.”

 

Cas looked over to the twins. They spoke together. “Are we loved ones?”

 

“Of course,” Cas said as he got up from the table. He picked up his mug and Dean’s bowl. He dropped them off in the sink. He came back and cleared the bowls in front of the kids. Dean pulled out a box that had been sitting on the floor at his side. He set it on the table and pulled out the container of crayons and papers that were inside. He pushed some toward the kids and kept some for himself.

 

“Do you want to color too, Cas?” He asked over his shoulder toward Cas who was washing out the dishes.

 

“Of course.” Well this was becoming Cas’ new mantra. “Just let me finish these up.

 

Dean turned his attention back to the kids. He smiled and picked up a crayon and began drawing on his own crisp white paper

 

* * *

 

 

The day had moved along. They drew pictures, and Cas proudly displayed them on the refrigerator. He sounded like a proud parent when he held out one of Deimos’ drawings, a vast winding river. Deimos smiled at Cas and the praise. Phobos had handed his drawing to Dean. It was not so peaceful. All that Dean could say of it at first was, “Wow.” Phobos reached across the table and took Dean’s drawing. Dean had chosen to sketch Cas who was drawing at the counter. 

 

They’d drawn several things at that point. Of course Phobos would want to see this one. “It looks just like him.”

 

“I think that’s the point,” Dean responded. Dean set down Phobos’ piece and pointed at a detail. “Who’s the woman in the water?” The piece had the same windy river that was in Deimos’ piece, but there were bodies, eviscerated by something powerful, possibly the woman in the water. 

 

Phobos reached toward the paper and let his finger stroke the hair of the woman that he’d drawn. “I draw what I love.”

 

“Well, we all do that,” Dean encouraged. He glanced down at his own drawing and smiled a little.

 

Phobos seemed to notice. “I also draw what I remember. I draw fear.”

 

“Are you afraid of her?” Dean asked as he tapped the image of the woman in the middle, her red eyes practically glowing from the page. 

 

Phobos took the drawing away from Dean entirely. He held it to his chest and got up. He walked to Cas and said, “Do you like my drawing?”

 

Cas looked from Phobos to Dean and back. “You are very talented,” he said as he looked at the paper. “It feels very real.” He came down to a crouch in front of the child. “You and your brother are very impressive.”

 

“Thank you Castiel,” Phobos said. “Will you put my drawing on the refrigerator too?”

 

Cas took the drawing and moved to the refrigerator. He found a magnet and carefully positioned it in the center of the door. He came back to Phobos and set a hand gently on his shoulder. “Do you and your brother want to go play with Jack for awhile?” The boys nodded together and headed out of the room together. Cas came to Dean’s side and sat with him in silence for a few moments. “It does look like me.” He tapped Dean’s drawing.

 

“I have a few talents,” Dean said. “What’d you draw?” 

 

Cas passed him a paper. “Something from memory.” 

 

Dean picked up the paper and looked at the image. Dean looked down at himself holding a baby against his chest in the bedroom. He was leaned back against the wall, seemingly asleep. He had experienced this moment a few times. “Is that Ellie or Samuel?” Dean asked.

 

“Ellie,” Cas said as he pointed at a little detail near where her feet would be if the blanket wasn’t obscuring things. “See the little flower there.”

 

“Oh, yeah, good detail.” Dean set the paper down and got up. “Do you think we could maybe get out of here for a bit, just you and me?”

 

“I can go let Sam know. I’m sure he’ll be fine with it.” Before Cas made it out of the room he turned and asked, “Are we driving or walking?”

 

“Driving. I’ll meet you at the car.” Dean cleared off the table a little and Cas stalked off to find Sam. 

 

* * *

 

 

The wind in his hair and the loud music settled his thoughts. Dean drove to the end of the road and took a right toward what would eventually be the highway if they just drove for seemingly ever. After a while, Cas asked, “Got a destination in mind?” 

 

Dean turned down the stereo and said, “Not even a little. I just needed to be outside. I feel like I’m gonna mess something up, and this might set my mind to rights again.” Dean glanced at Cas then back at the road. 

 

“What could you possibly mess up?” Cas stretched out an arm along the back of the seat, his hand dangled near Dean’s shoulder.

 

“I didn’t handle the art project right, for one. Phobos is just a kid. I should have just said, that’s a nice picture and been done. That was the plan after all. You and me,” Dean waved a hand between them. “We were going to look at them a bit more closely later, come to conclusions.”

 

“You handled it fine Dean. And even if it wasn’t perfect, he was happy with the response he got at the end.”

 

“Your response. You handled it all perfect. Like I said, I’m gonna mess things up.” Dean sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “Maybe I’m not sleeping enough.”

 

“You aren’t. You should just let me tend to the babies tonight. Actually try to sleep.” Cas let his hand drift to Dean’s shoulder. After a few moments, his thumb began stroking back and forth over Dean’s tense muscles. “You’re tense.”

 

“It’s been a rough week. I’m not sure I’m cut out for parenting.”

 

“Pull over.” There was a small gravel shoulder near a lone tree that was casting shade where they would park. The road ahead was long and straight. There wasn’t a car for miles. “Open your door and put your feet out their, back to me,” Cas commanded.

 

“Okay,” Dean said with skepticism all over the word. He creaked the door open and stretched his legs out. “Why am I doing this?” Dean asked just as Cas pressed his hands to Dean’s shoulders.

 

“Shhh. Let me do this for you.” Cas kneaded at the muscles and Dean felt himself melting into the touch. “You’re totally cut out for parenting, and you’re doing a great job. You just need to take a moment here and there to recharge. Like now.” 

 

_ God, that right there. _ Cas was digging into Dean’s shoulder and it hurt, and it felt so good. Dean’s head tipped forward to his chest, which Cas took as an invitation to work on the muscles of Dean’s neck. “If you ever need a side job, you could totally work as a massage therapist.” 

 

“Be sure to breathe.” He ran his thumbs along the muscles on either side of Dean’s spine. “You’re so stubborn sometimes. You always think that everything is your responsibility. Maybe sometimes you can let others in, let them take some of the burden.”

 

Dean started to turn a little to look at him. “What’s this coming from? I totally let people help.”

 

“Sometimes you do. At night though, when I could totally do the baby care, you could sleep, but you don’t. You wake up, try to help.”

 

Dean laughed, “I don’t just try to help, I do help.” He tipped his head back and looked at Cas all upside down. Cas let his hands fall to Dean’s waist where he proceeded to knead at his lower back. He didn’t break the gaze that they were both locked into. “So, you saying you don’t enjoy my company at night? Thought we were a team.”

 

Cas leaned down and pressed a kiss to Dean’s forehead. “Don’t be manipulative. Of course we’re a team. And your half of the team needs to sleep.”

 

“You’re manipulative.” Dean grumbled and broke the gaze. He faced out to the endless land. The tall grasses swayed in waves. “So you start massaging my back and kissing my forehead and telling me what to do, then you call me manipulative.” Cas sighed at his back. “Also, this is new territory, and you know it.”

 

“What do you mean?” Cas worked his massaging up Dean’s back.

 

“You know what I mean.” Dean tipped his head back again and looked at Cas. “You kissed my forehead. Closest we’ve ever come to that sort of thing was a healing head boop.”

 

“Are you telling me to not do that again?” Cas’ hands stopped moving, the massage seemingly on pause while Dean considered his response. Dean brought his head back upright.

 

“I’m telling you that it’s new territory.” Dean took a deep breath. “I certainly didn’t say to stop.” Cas’ hands worked his back again. “A guy could get use to this.” 

 

“A guy, huh?” Cas kept massaging.

 

“This guy.” Dean tipped his head back and stared at Cas. Dean took a deep breath and added,  “It’s hard to get use to new things, to good things.”

 

“Then we take things slowly.” Cas glanced off to the same field that Dean had stared at before. “We raise our babies and children, and we let each day be what it is.”

 

“What does that last bit mean?”

 

Cas returned his gaze to Dean’s upside down face. “We explore new territory as it presents itself, but only if you want that.”

 

“Do you want that?” Dean asked.

 

“Always.” Cas leaned down and kissed Dean’s forehead again. They stayed there parked on the side of the road, and time passed, and the world felt at peace.

 

* * *

 

 

They pulled into the garage and killed the engine. Jack was pacing a ditch into the floor. Dean felt worry pool up in his stomach. He launched out of the car. “Are they okay?” He moved toward the door to see for himself.

 

Jack caught his arm.  “They’re fine. I was just waiting for you two. I wanted to talk to you about the children.”

 

Cas came to his side and said, “They’re all older than you, Jack?”

 

“Some of them are older than they claim.” Jack leveled his gaze on Cas. “Phobos and Deimos lived on earth for a few years before they were taken off earth.”

 

“What do you mean by off earth?” Dean asked.

 

“I mean that they were taken to other planets, some outside of this galaxy.” Jack glanced over his shoulder at the door like he was worried that someone would hear his telling of the secrets. He continued though, “Their mother is not human, and their father is an angel.”

 

“How do you know this?” Dean asked.

 

“I looked at the shadow stories that they made, and then there was the drawing on the fridge.” Jack walked over to the door and pushed it closed. It seemed to embolden him. “The others are nephilim, but Phobos and Deimos are something else. They have no human parentage.”

 

“Then what are they?” Dean asked.

 

Cas interrupted, “Better question, who are their parents?”

 

Jack nervously glanced back at the door and said, “I believe that the woman depicted in the art is Kali. She is the goddess…”

 

“We know who she is,” Dean interrupted. He glanced at Cas and asked, “Gabriel?”

 

“Likely.”

 

“But when Lucifer sired Jack here, all the angels heard it. I mean you all got that loud, angel radio memo.” Dean waved his arms out a little.

 

Jack said, “It seemed my father was rather proud of his efforts. He wanted to let everyone know that he was building an army—an army of nephilim.” 

 

Cas set a hand on him. “He was rather prone to crowing about his accomplishments.”

 

“So, I was thinking that maybe the angel that is the father of Phobos and Deimos…” Jack seemed to struggle for words for a moment then continued, “Maybe he didn’t want anyone to know.”

 

“So their father would be the type to break rules, keep secrets, consort with gods. Hmm, sounds exactly like Gabriel.”

 

Cas asked, “So why are the children keeping the secret?”

 

“I’m guessing that they are under a compulsion or something. I’m guessing that they are not able to tell us directly, because someone thought that the secret would protect them,” Jack offered. “Sam let me take on research duty today.” He smiled all big and gummy at them. “I haven’t determined who the parents are of the other children, but they certainly seem connected.”

 

“You said the others are nephilim, though, so one angel and one human parent?” Dean asked.

 

“Yes, the essence of each is very similar. They are all powerful beings. I’m not as powerful as I once was, so it isn’t entirely clear. Once Cas and I get back to heaven, that might change. For now we’re both a little…” 

 

Cas cut him off with a gentle slap on the back. “You’ve done great Jack. I’m really proud of you.”

 

Dean was about to question Jack, find out where his sentence was going before the Cas interruption, when he heard the sound of a baby wailing. The door opened and Sam stood there holding Ellie in his arms. A moment passed and Claire was at his back with a similarly upset Samuel. Sam said, “Thank God you’re home.” Sam walked up to Dean and pressed Ellie into his arms. “Fix this.”

 

Claire approached Cas and said, “Yeah, fix this. I’m stressing out here.”

 

Dean began rocking Ellie who was pressed to his chest. “You just don’t hold her right. She likes to hear your heartbeat.”

 

Ellie calmed down. Cas was holding Samuel the same way. Cas laughed and pressed a kiss to little Samuel’s head. “I know, Claire is not able to hear you though. You might want to start talking a little so that she knows what you need.” 

 

“What did he want?” Claire asked. 

 

“He wanted his bottle warmer, then he wanted his diaper changed. Lastly, he wanted to play. He likes when I pretend that I’m going to drop him. It is a strange game.”

 

“Well, how was I supposed to know all that?”

 

Cas laughed, and the babies were calm and quiet. “You couldn’t have known. Dean and I just get them.” Cas winked at Dean.

 

“Well, what did Ellie want?” Sam asked.

 

Cas leaned in close to Dean and Ellie and whispered, “So little princess, what did you want?”

 

Cas grinned  a little. Sam asked, “Well?”

 

“She just wanted Dean. Guess you weren’t going to be able to fix that.”

 

“A girl with exceptional taste, if I do say so myself.” Dean stood a little taller then. 

 

Sam came to Dean and rested a hand on little Ellie’s head. “I tried little one. Guess I’m not quite Dean enough for ya. I even sang to her.” He looked up at Dean. “I made sure I was completely off-key just like you.”

 

Dean rolled his eyes. “Come on, Cas. Let’s get them settled in.” Cas followed him into the bunker. They passed the other children in the kitchen as they ate their sandwiches. They waved as they passed and left Sam, Claire, and Jack to tend to them. They didn’t get far though, when there was a loud knock on the door above. 

 

Everyone came out to the main room. The knock came again. Sam raised his gun and made his way up the stairs. Claire had him covered with her own gun. “Cover the kids,” Sam called down. Dean started to move the kids into the kitchen and out of what could be harm’s way. 

 

Phobos and Deimos said together, “We are stronger than you. Let us stay to help.” Dean kind of couldn’t argue with that.

 

Sam nodded down at them and, gun at the ready, opened the door. Rowena stepped onto the landing and then promptly collapsed into a heap at Sam’s feet.


	6. Sam and the Witch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little POV shifting in this one. We start with Sam and then go back to Dean. Hope you all don't mind the shorter installment.

Sam moved from his spot on the side of Rebekah’s bed. She’d struggled to sleep. He read her two stories and still she begged him to stay, so he did. When she finally fell asleep a little after midnight, he was finally able to go through his usual nightly routine. He got up and pulled the blanket snug over Rebekah’s shoulders and gave her a gentle kiss on the forehead. “Goodnight little princess.”

 

With that he moved out to the hall. He would go from room to room to see that everyone was okay, before finding his way to his own room. He pushed open the door to Phobos and Deimos’ room. Though they had two beds, they were curled up together in just one. Sam walked in and pulled the blanket up to cover them better. He smiled down at the way they looked, hands clasped together, lips puffed out in deepest sleep.

 

Sam made his way to Claire’s room. Her door was open a crack, so he pushed it open just a little to see if she was okay. She was asleep, then she wasn’t. “What the fuck, Sam!” She shouted.

 

“I was just checking on you,” Sam said as he backed away.

 

“I’m a hunter. You don’t go checking up on hunters like they’re normal people.” She slid her gun back under her mattress.

 

“Duly noted. You never woke up before though, just sayin’.”

 

“Well, guess the kids didn’t exhaust me as much tonight.” She waved him back in. “Took the boys to that gym room. Jack eventually came with Rebekah.” She smiled and added, “You can thank us later for the peace and quiet we gave you for most of the day.”

 

“Thanks Claire,” Sam smiled back. “Pretty sure it’s not gonna be peaceful around here for some time.”

 

“You mean because she’s here?”

 

“Maybe. Doesn’t bode well that she hasn’t woken up yet.” He ran a hand back through his hair. “Tell me about the fun times in the gym though.” Sam leaned into the doorframe.  


“We taught them how to fight without using their powers. It was just some simple moves. Jack said that sometimes when you don’t know your own strength, you should go with something simpler.”

 

“So what sorts of stuff did you have them do?” Sam asked.

 

“They punched the punching ball, and bounced around on the trampolines. Rebekah and Phobos are rather acrobatic. Deimos liked the jump rope.”

 

“Sounds simple.” Sam felt a measure of relief wash over him.

 

“It was.” Claire laid back down. “Now let me sleep.” She waved at the door.

 

“Fine.” Sam walked out the door and closed it behind him. He made his way to Jack’s door. There was a faint glow coming from the bottom. Jack didn’t sleep much. Sam pushed the door open with a little knock. Jack glanced up. “Not bugging you am I?”

 

Jack beamed. “Course not. I was hoping you’d check on me so we could talk.”

 

“Guess everyone knows my routines except for Claire.” Sam sat on the edge of the bed facing Jack’s desk. Jack turned in his chair and let his arm hang over the edge.

 

“She’s grumpy like Dean when you interrupt her sleep. Like a tiny, yellow bear.” Jack whispered the last bit, with an all too knowing wrinkle to his brows.

 

“Take it you got yelled at too.”

 

“Not tonight, but a couple of weeks ago. I don’t bother her at night anymore.”

 

“Well, it sounds like you had something you wanted to tell me?” Sam asked.

 

Jack seemed to immediately brighten. “Yeah.” He turned to his desk and pulled over a book. He handed it to Sam. “Open it to the page with the paper there.” Jack pointed at the little stub of paper that was wedged between the pages.

 

Sam complied. The book was old, something from the library. It was handwritten on hides. “You can read Sanskrit?”  Sam raised a brow with the question.

 

“Not yet. I’m studying it though. I think it’ll come in handy given Phobos and Deimos’ parentage.” He reached down and tapped the picture. “Look.” Sam turned his gaze to the image on the page. It was a depiction of Kali in the middle of a river, eyes glowing bright red, skin dark as pitch. She lapped at a pool of blood on the shore.

 

“A bit gruesome.” Sam looked up at Jack.

 

“Well, that’s not surprising. Half the stuff in these books is violent. I wonder sometimes if we’ll ever get to research something soft and kind.”

 

“I did try to get us a dog. You all gotta work on Dean a little more.” Sam smiled and Jack smiled back. “So what about this image was important to you?”

 

“Look at the picture from the fridge.” Jack pulled over the loose paper from his desk, the one that Phobos had drawn. “It’s the same moment. And, get this, when we made shadow puppets in the hall, this was what they showed me.”

 

Sam held the image next to the one in the book. “It’s different though too.”

 

“Yes.”

 

“The bodies on the shore in the drawing are all different, but the ones in the book are all the same.”

 

Jack said, “The book depicts the story of Raktabija being slain by Kali. To the children the slaughter might not have seemed like the destruction of similar looking beings that sprang up from the wounds of the demon Raktabija.”

 

Sam hummed in agreement. “It might have been rather traumatic for two children to see the slaughter of beings that looked alike.”

 

“They might have thought that they were next.” Jack leaned into the back of his chair.

 

“I bet that’s when they left,” Sam thought out loud. “They thought that Kali would do this to them. They didn’t know that this was different.”

 

“I just wonder why she didn’t come for them,” Jack said.

 

“Maybe she will. Maybe she just doesn’t know what happened yet.”

 

Jack looked skeptical. “That hardly sounds like the workings of a god.”

 

“Let me just hope.” Sam got up. “Worrying is going to require more sleep than I’ve gotten tonight.”

 

“You can sleep here, since your bed is taken,” Jack offered.

 

“Nah, I’m gonna go sit with her for a bit.”

 

Jack shrugged and Sam made his way to his room. He considered walking to Dean’s door to check on him, but that never felt necessary. Dean had Cas to check on him, and the babies made their needs known enough times during the night that Dean was surely not getting near enough sleep. Still, he walked down the hall a little and paused to listen. All was quiet, then there was the low hum of Dean’s voice, and the rumble of Cas’ response. Sam couldn’t make out the words, but he felt satisfied that all was well.

 

He turned back to his room. Rowena was in his bed, blanket pulled up to her shoulders where he had left it. She was breathing shallowly, but if he knew her, and he thought he did, he knew that he shouldn’t have to worry for her safety. She was stronger than all of them. He was a little concerned that she returned to the bunker alone. He was also a little concerned that something weakened her. He was also concerned by the feel of her, when he scooped her up in his arms and felt the shape of her pressed to him.

 

Sam didn’t share all of his concerns with the others. Instead he just put her into his bed and immediately covered her up. She almost looked peaceful. He reached down and brushed a strand of hair back from her cheek. He sat at his desk chair and propped his feet on the end of the bed. “Let me know if you need anything,” he whispered to her. She, of course, did not respond. Sam closed his eyes and tried to sleep. His thoughts though were all swimming. It was like he was being carried out to sea on rolling waves of senseless doubt. She’d never been taken down before, not really. And she faced Lucifer.

 

Things were different now though. He told himself that nothing could truly hurt her, but he sat there knowing that she could very well be hurt, and he didn’t like the feeling that stirred up in him one bit.

 

Before he fell asleep, his hand drifted to her and settled on her stomach. It did not ease his worry.

 

* * *

 

 

“So, you think he noticed,” Cas said, voice low and comforting.

 

“Yeah, I’m sure he did. You saw how he was. Then he carried her right to his room. Barely spoke after.” Dean stared straight up at the ceiling as he laid on his bed. Cas was laying next to him, staring at the ceiling too. They were both still dressed minus shoes. The babies had been asleep for nearly an hour. The bunker was quiet. The evening had certainly taken a turn.

 

“You actually think Sam’s the…”

 

“I didn’t say that.”

 

“I know, but you implied it.” Dean turned his head a little to face Cas. “There are other possibilities. She wasn’t monogamous. She even propositioned me once,” Cas said.

 

“Don’t think I didn’t notice.” Dean paused a moment then added, “Wait, are you saying that you and she, that…”

 

Cas interrupted, “I should let you just keep going down that panic stricken road you’re on right now, but I won’t. No, Dean, I didn’t sleep with her.”

 

“Well, good.”

 

Cas laughed a little and then added, “My interests lie elsewhere.”

 

Dean returned his gaze to the ceiling. “Does it now?” He smirked.

 

“Don’t be stupid.” Dean side-eyed him, then Cas continued, “Did she proposition you ever?”

 

“Hard to tell. She’s flirty with everyone, but I’m pretty sure that she didn’t see me as an option,” Dean said.

 

“Hm, I wonder why.” Cas rolled onto his side and propped his head up on his arm.

 

“I think she could tell that my interests,” Dean looked at Cas and finished, “lie elsewhere.”

 

“So, it’s either Sam or Gabriel if we’re just going on what we’ve seen?” Cas let his hand move to cover Dean’s.

 

“Maybe, I mean, it’s not like Sam and I really talked about what happened with them at the hotel. I passed out, and the next morning there was more going on between them than there had been the night before. Sam was,” Dean sighed, “gentle with her.”

 

“From what you told me, it had been an emotional experience. She wanted to get Billie’s attention so that she could get Crowley back.”

 

“Yeah, I mean, even I prayed for a reversal on that front. I was a bit more focused on other losses at that time though. She had a lot of regret. And she and Sam shared similar tortures at the hands of Lucifer. They have a little bond between them and the emotional loss maybe brought things to a head while I was out.”

 

“We should hope that it’s Sam.” Cas moved closer to Dean and slid his hand up under Dean’s head. Dean adjusted into the curve of him.

 

“Not sure why we want to hope for that.”

 

“Well, we saw what happened to Kelly.”

 

“Rowena isn’t your run of the mill human. If Lucifer couldn’t kill her, I don’t think there’s a thing in the world that could.”

 

“I don’t think that even Rowena could survive this.”

 

Dean looked up into Cas’ face. He looked worn out. His eyes were soft and seemed like they’d close and send the angel off to dreams. Dean wondered if Cas wasn’t feeling a little more human lately. “Are you okay?” Dean found the nerve to ask.

 

“Quite.” He pressed a kiss to Dean’s head.

 

“You seem tired.”

 

“Our lives are very full. It is a lot to think about.” Dean reached up to him and brushed back his hair as he continued. “I find that I need to sleep a little from time to time.”

 

“Because of all of the thinking you’re doing?” Dean looked at him with a skeptical uptick of his eyebrow.

 

“It’s more than that. Nothing to worry over though. I’m well, and I’m happy.”

 

“And you’d tell me if it was something else?” Dean asked.

 

“Maybe.” Cas kissed him again, just shy of his lips. “If it seemed like I needed to pique your interest, keep it from going elsewhere.”

 

“I mean it, Cas, you have to tell me if anything’s wrong. I’ll worry if you don’t.”

 

“And we wouldn’t want that.” He ran his fingers through Dean’s hair, and Dean closed his eyes and savored the comfort of it. He told himself not to worry. This was Cas, and he was here, and he was fine.


	7. Reinforcements

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait. It's been quite the month. Just got back from a small vacation that kept me from going stir crazy at home. Being mostly bed bound for a month will do that. So glad to be getting back to normal.
> 
> There's a little angst in this chapter, but some resolution for that angst too. Love to you all and thanks for all of the support.

They took turns relieving Sam of his watching so he'd get some sort of sleep. He didn't let the relief last for long though.

 

Rebekah spent time with him, quietly playing with some toys on the rug. Her gaze though, often lingered on Sam, and the playing seemed like it was just part of a facade designed to make her presence in the room feel normal.

 

Dean fed the babies and the twins. He planned to head to Sam's room to get him to have breakfast. Rebekah darted into the room just ahead of him and bounced up into Sam's lap.

 

Sam's eyes snapped open, then he smiled as he wrapped his arms around her. Dean leaned into the doorframe. “Still the same?” Dean asked.

 

“Yeah. I talked with Jody last night. She said that she'd send Alex out soon to set up an IV. I just don't think I'm doing enough.” Sam looked from Dean to Rowena. It had been two days.

 

“I'll be sure to get her room set up. Jody coming too?”

 

“Maybe. She wasn’t sure. Guess it'll be a surprise.” Sam sighed. Rebekah seemed to burrow in closer. Sam pressed a kiss to her head. “You okay, little one?”

 

Rebekah scurried off of Sam's lap. She started to reach out to Rowena. “Is she good?”

 

“What are you doing?” Sam took Rebekah's hand and drew her back to him.

 

“You're very worried about her. When I came here, he told me that you were a very good man and that you'd take care of me. When I took your hand, I could tell that what he said was true.”

 

“Who said all of that?” Dean asked.

 

Rebekah just stared. Sam asked, “So, were you going to check Rowena to see if she was one of the good guys?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“I don't think you should do that.” Sam pulled Rebekah back to him and into a hug. “You'll see things that will be rather awful. She hasn't always been good, but she is now.”

 

“She was bad?” Rebekah asked.

 

“It's complicated. She did a lot of bad things, but she thought that she had good reasons.” Sam's gaze slid to Rowena. “She lost someone that meant a lot to her, and she suffered at the hands of someone that was very cruel. This changed her.”

 

Dean stood silently, taking it all in. Rebekah said, “So now you're worried that she'll die?”

 

Sam didn't answer, so Dean did. “We take care of people, Rebekah. Part of that includes worrying that we're not doing our best.”

 

Rebekah got up again and reached out to Rowena, this time faster than Sam could stop her. Her eyes glowed golden for a moment, then her hand fell. Sam caught her as she crumbled to the floor. “Shit, Dean!”

 

Dean was at his side in an instant. Sam got Rebekah up onto the bed and leaned down to check her breathing. “What just happened?” Dean asked. Then over his shoulder he called out, “Cas!”

 

Rebekah’s eyes were closed, her chest rose and fell steadily. “Dean?” Cas was holding Samuel. He handed the baby to Dean and leaned in, brushing Rebekah’s hair back from her face. “What happened?”

 

The others poured into the room. Jack came to Cas’ side. “What happened?”

 

Cas glanced at him, and some sort of silent communication seemed to pass between them. Cas set his hand back on Rebekah again, and Jack set his hand on Cas’ shoulder. Cas was wearing a pair of Dean’s old plaid pajama pants and a tight black t-shirt.

 

Samuel shifted a little in Dean’s arms and seemed to turn his attention to the bed. Cas stood again. “She is fine.” He spared a glance for Sam. “She wanted to help your friend.”

 

“My friend?” Sam asked.

 

“Yes, her words.”

 

“She’s talking?” Dean asked.

 

Cas turned to him a moment and added, “She just used too much of her energy to heal Rowena. She’s young.”

 

Jack added, “She’ll learn to control that. Maybe I can work on that with them.” Jack turned to the others, “Well, let’s go finish breakfast.” Claire and the twins followed him out. Dean even handed off Samuel to Jack as he went.

 

Rebekah blinked a little and then sat up. “She didn’t wake up?” she said as she glanced down at Rowena.

 

Cas cupped her cheek in his hand. “Not yet. You were trying to heal a very powerful witch. You need to be more careful.”

 

“She should be okay.” She looked confused. “She needed water and food. I fixed that though.”

 

“Sometimes it’s not that simple.” Sam brushed back the hair from her face. He changed the conversational direction. “When you were told to come to us, he said that we were good people, and that we’d protect you right?” He was just as vague as she’d been.

 

“Yes,” her voice was soft in the dimly lit room. She smoothed down her sleeping gown, that had a vibrantly colored pink unicorn on the front.

 

“If he’d trust us with you, then he’d trust us to make other difficult choices too. Trust me, Rebekah. Rowena will be okay.” She nodded. “Could you tell me more about this man though, the one that said you should trust us?”

 

Rebekah was quiet, but she looked like she really wanted to share. Dean remembered the day that she showed the scene with the skyscrapers in the hall. He moved to Cas’ side and said, “Maybe you could just tell us about the shadow girl that climbed down from the skyscrapers.”

 

Rebekah’s mouth fell open and words actually tumbled out. “I can tell you about the shadow girl.” Her hands snapped up to her mouth. “I can tell you about how she came to be,” she spoke past her fingers.

 

**The Tale of Shadow Girl and the Daring Climb**

 

There was a tall building in the bustling city of Monte Carlo. There were actually many tall buildings in Monte Carlo, but this one building in particular was the tallest and oldest of them all. It wouldn’t show up on any picture postcards or photographs. It was cloaked under the magic that the old gods wielded. The southern facing windows looked out over the sea. The northern facing windows looked out on the vibrant green mountains.

 

It was not a place for children. It was a place filled with energy and money and, beneath the surface of it all, violence the likes of which most would never expect. It was in this modern temple to the gods that a child came to be.

 

The building itself was built on a long forgotten temple site. The gods were drawn to the place for the many sacrifices that had been made there long ago. In fact they thrived on the sacrifices made and the continued merriment of the current guests. They’d welcome them into the casino, and send them through the varied rooms full of wine, and bodies, and games of chance. The men and women that roamed the halls felt the distinct pleasure that comes from proximity to the gods.

 

And if one were lucky or unlucky enough to be noticed, one might be invited to join the party that was continuously going on up in the penthouse. Day or night, spring, summer, fall, or winter, the revelers would dance and drink and celebrate literally anything. It was to one of these parties that a woman with chestnut brown hair found herself happily dancing away one late spring night. And it was this woman that captivated a man that typically avoided being captivated by anyone, unless he was telling the story, which he was not.

 

He lived among the gods, took on one of their names, but he was not one of them. He found the woman with the chestnut brown hair on the balcony swaying to the music that drifted to her ears on the crisp sea air. They didn’t speak at first. Instead he just took her hand, and they danced languidly with the vibrant blue sea as a backdrop to their moment. They spoke without speaking, and each felt as if they knew the other.

 

Time passed differently there, and though it was but a night, it was also years. He'd lost many that he had cared about, and his sorrow was not something that he got to share with anyone. But she was different. She was his comfort. She listened to his unaltered stories, tales that delivered truth. It was in his nature to change the background, make the moments much more vibrant.

 

They were together, and from that union, a child came to be. From the moment she began, she could hear her father’s stories. She could hear affection in his voice and in her mother’s too. The first things she learned of were of love, and because of that the shadow girl grew happily.

 

All would not stay so peaceful though. Eventually, it became obvious that a child was to be born. And instead of feelings of lightheartedness and love, the shadow girl came to know a thing called fear. She could hear her father talking to her mother. He told her that they needed to leave in order to be safe.

 

The others would soon know that she was with child, if they didn't know already. As the departure day drew near, without a hint whatsoever, the old gods made it impossible for them to leave. They separated them, sending him away while keeping her secure in the penthouse.

 

Time passed, and the shadow girl did not learn much about why the gods had turned on her father. She also felt his silence. Something or someone was keeping him from communicating with her. She worried. He needed to get back to them. She would be born soon. She worried for her mother, who had also grown silent since the separation.

 

Then one day, there was pain. It was something she’d never known. The white hot stabbing rendered all thoughts pointless. She felt such agony, but it was not her own. It was the pain that her father was experiencing transferred to her in much the same way that they had communicated before.

 

And it was due to the pain that the shadow girl suddenly came into the world. Her mother died then, but the shadow girl could not sense that. All she could do was writhe and thrash about on the bed, eyes squeezed closed against the blinding light. There were voices attempting to pierce the pain. The old gods were speaking above her. One of them said, “How long should we wait before we extract the first bit of it?”

 

“I don’t know,” another said.

 

The shadow girl knew, even through the pain, that she needed to grow. A small voice whispered to her past the pain, encouraging her to do just that, so she did. It was only a little growth. She became a toddler, and the old gods drew closer to look at her more. “Perhaps when she is done with her changing,” the balding god said.

 

They stepped away from her, but before they did, they waved some servants in to clear away the body of her mother. For a small time, she was alone in the room. Her mother was gone, her father was gone, and her world felt empty. At least the pain that had spurred so much action before had subsided. She moved to the window and looked out on the world.

 

A whisper found her in the quiet. “You will need to get away from here.” She knew for sure then that no one would save her. She knew that if she was going to be safe, that she’d have to save herself. So she grew a little more. She pulled fabric from everything she could, bed sheets, curtains, clothing… She decided then to climb down the side of the skyscraper. She would get to the ground. She would follow the urgings of the whisper. And the whisper told her to go to a place called Kansas and to a man named Sam Winchester.

 

* * *

 

 

It was a bit to unpackage. Dean stayed up out at the war room table until pretty late. The others gradually drifted off to other parts of the bunker. The children were more subdued for most of the day, as if Rebekah’s story was their story too. They went to their rooms at the end of the night as if they’d fought battles and maybe lost. Sam stayed close to Rebekah, giving her what comfort he could.

 

Dean had an old record playing to soothe away the day. It was three songs deep onto the B side. He tapped a pen on the edge of the sketchbook that he was making notes on. Cas eventually roamed into the room and came to him. Dean felt his hand on his shoulder, then the slow drag of his fingers. Dean closed his eyes as Cas’ fingers dragged up into his hair and massaged at his scalp. “God, Cas. This is a lot.”

 

“Gabriel was never one to follow rules. I’ve often wondered who would pay the price for it all.” His thoughts were disrupted by the door above opening with a rough scrape of hinges.

 

Dean and Cas both startled toward it. Dean pulled the gun from beneath the table and aimed toward it. Charlie stepped through. “Well, hello to you too, Dean.” She smiled down at him. Bobby and Mary entered behind her, each of them carrying a baby.

 

Dean lowered the gun. “What the hell, Charlie?” Dean got up and moved toward the stairs as they came down. “Mom, Bobby, you never returned my calls.”

 

“We got kinda busy with these two.” Bobby came down the stairs first and threw one arm around Dean in a half hug. “By the way, this here is little Zeke and Mary’s holding little Brie. They came with letters, just in case you lot think I’d name a baby after a cheese.” Bobby turned his attention to Zeke and started making faces at him.

 

Dean glanced at Cas then at his mom. Mary came to him and pulled him into an awkward hug as she balanced the baby on her hip. “Missed you Dean.”

 

“Missed you too. Welcome home.” Dean stepped back and motioned at the babies. “So, babies?”

 

Charlie stepped in and said, “I met up with them after picking up some particularly special honey.” It was still hard for Dean to shed the memory of her dead and gone. She was so vibrant, here and alive. She went on, “So we met up in Ohio, and they were taking down some minor demon uprising or something.”

 

“You act like you didn’t have any hand in helping.” Mary laughed. She clapped a hand on Charlie’s shoulder. “This one is quite the hunter. Could have taken them all out single handedly.”

 

“Well, glad to help. It’s a bit easier here that’s for sure. I’ll take a handful of these kinds of demons any day over the mess we had over there.”

 

Dean waved his hand in a circle saying, “And the babies came along…”

 

“Oh, yeah, so we were leaving, and” Charlie points at Bobby, “This one hears a baby crying.”

 

“What can I say, I’m the baby listener.” Bobby laughs. “I’m gonna go get some beer. You want any, Mary?”

 

“I’m good.” Bobby carried Zeke off with him toward the kitchen. “We figured that the demons took them for some sort of ritual or something. Then we found the letters.” Mary shifted Brie and pulled a letter out of her jacket, which Dean only now noticed was not her jacket at all, but Bobby’s.

 

She handed Dean the letter. He scanned it quickly and said, “So a few more to add to the Winchester Daycare it seems.” Cas leaned in and read the letter.

 

“Winchester Daycare?” Mary asked.

 

“Yeah, if you’d answered your phone you’d know that we got a few kids populating the place.” Dean felt an edge of irritation run through his voice.

 

Cas spoke up, breaking the tension. “We’ve been blessed with a few kids of our own here. They keep showing up. First a couple of babies, then some older kids. We’ve been taking care of them. We’ve also been trying to learn why they’re here, and who they are.”

 

Mary directed her question at Cas. “Did the others come with letters asking that they be cared for by Sam and Dean Winchester?”

 

“The babies did,” Dean answered. “The older ones are more complicated.”

 

It was then that Sam emerged from the back of the bunker with Rebekah in tow. “Mom,” he said with all the affection of a son that had never felt an ounce of anger at his parents. He stalked over to her and swept her into a hug. “You’re back.”

 

“Well, at least someone’s happy about that.” She pointedly glanced at Dean.

 

“I’m plenty happy you’re home.” The baby in her arms started fussing. It’s little face crunched up into a look of frustration. It’s little fists balled up and shook. “Oh, someone’s not happy.” Dean reached out.

 

“She gets a little cranky in the evening. I think she wants to be fed.”

 

“I can take her.” She handed Brie off to Dean who took her and started toward the kitchen. Everyone followed like a little parade. Bobby was leaning into the counter drinking his beer while a bottle boiled on the stove. “You have actual milk in there?” Dean asked.

 

“Yeah, what else am I feeding him?”

 

Dean switched off the stove and removed the bottle. “We have actual baby formula.” Dean started to make up the bottle, but Cas took over. Brie had calmed in his arms since he took her. “Looks like I’m the baby whisperer in these parts.”

 

“You certainly are,” Cas said.

 

Everyone took up residence around the table. Charlie asked, “So, did Rowena make it back yet? She said she’d call me when she got in, but I haven’t heard from her yet.”

 

“Wait, you were with her?” Sam asked. They were sitting across from each other at the table. Rowena was still unconscious.

 

“Of course. I left here with her after all.” Charlie rolled her eyes.

 

“She came back days ago, and she’s been unconscious since.” Sam said.

 

Charlie got up. “Show me.” She started to move out of the kitchen and Sam followed, Rebekah went too. Dean could hear Charlie saying, “She was absolutely fine when we parted.”

 

Their voices faded off, and Cas brought the bottle to Dean. “Never a dull moment around these parts it seems,” Mary said.

 

Bobby came to sit beside her, and Cas passed him a bottle too. “So, you all have room for us tonight?” Bobby asked.

 

“Of course,” Cas said.

 

Dean interrupted, “We put Phobos and Deimos in Bobby’s old room to keep them close.”

 

“Well, those are some names,” Bobby said.

 

“Yeah, they’re different from the others. Maybe. They are the sons of Kali and the angel Gabriel. The rest might all be nephilim that Gabriel sired with various humans.”

 

“Hmm.” Zeke practically inhaled the formula. Bobby put the empty bottle on the table and lifted Zeke up to his shoulder to burp him.

 

“Bobby and I can just share my room if it hasn’t been repurposed. It’ll make it easier for us to care for the babies,” Mary said. Dean looked back and forth from the one to the other. Mary moved her arm to Bobby’s shoulder and gave it an affectionate squeeze. He smiled at her.

 

Cas said, “It is much easier to tend to the babies at night if you have help. “I’ll go take care of your room.”

 

“I’ll help.” Bobby got up. “Hey, Cas, you want to take little Brie. We could get them both situated while we’re in there. It’s quite a bit past their bedtimes.”

 

Cas came back to Dean’s side. Dean gently slipped the baby into his arms. Cas said, “Goodnight Mary.” Then he turned to Dean and said, “I’ll see you when you’re done.” With that he walked out of the room with Bobby.

 

They sat in silence for a few minutes listening to the hum of the bunker, the late night quiet. Dean wanted to ask her so many questions, but he was still nursing the irritation. She seemed content to wait him out. Then as the clock made it’s shaky, creaky sound that it did as it settled into the new hour, she said, “So, you and Cas?”

 

“No.” Dean wasn’t sure why he was denying it. He and Cas were clearly a thing. What that thing was was still as yet undefined in a specific sense. That hardly mattered, but he wasn’t ready to get into it with Mary.

 

“So he just meant that he’d come back here and see you?” Her tone carried all of the skepticism.

 

“I guess.” Dean swallowed. “We’ll need to talk about the new additions and what it means.” Dean was avoiding eye contact. He got up brusquely and went to the cabinet. He pulled out his hidden bottle of Jack and a pair of glasses. If ever a conversation needed liquor it was this one. “So you and Bobby?”

 

Dean sat back at the table and poured out a few fingers in each glass. He slid one over to Mary. She took a sip and then said, “No.” She waited a moment then added. “Pretty sure we’re just best friends like you and Cas.” She leveled her gaze on him and didn’t blink.

 

Dean downed his whole glass and dragged the bottle over for a refill. There was not enough alcohol in the world for this moment. “Look, I don’t know how to do this.”

 

“Do what?” Mary asked.

 

“Talk to you about things that matter.” Dean played with his glass but didn’t drink from it. The amber liquor swirled around.

 

“It’d probably help if I returned your calls.” She reached across the table to him and set her hand on his. “I’m sorry, Dean. I can do better, and I will.”

 

“I didn’t mean…”

 

“No, you did mean it, and you were right. I’m still carrying a ton of baggage, guilt, incompetence, emptiness.”

 

Dean interrupted her. “You don’t need to feel guilty, and as far as incompetence goes, ain’t no one here that sees that in you.”

 

She squeezed his hand. “I’m an incompetent mother, Dean.” Dean started to interrupt her again, but Mary continued, “And as far as guilt goes, you can’t alleviate that for me. I just have to figure that shit out for myself. When I do that, maybe I won’t feel so empty.”

 

“You know we love you, right?” Dean asked all quiet like it might lead to some form of rejection.

 

The edge of her lip ticked up a little. “You know I love you right back?”

 

Dean smiled and dipped his head a little. He lifted his glass and took a drink. “So, you staying around for a bit?”

 

“I think so. Bobby and I need a breather and the babies shouldn’t be going on hunts.”

 

Dean looked back up at her. “Part of me thought that we’d just be adding them to our pool of kids.”

 

“Maybe, but we’d be here to help with that. Wouldn’t be right to just say, ‘here raise these random kids we found.’” Mary took the bottle and poured herself a little more. “So, me and Bobby.” Dean’s eyebrow kicked up. “You gonna be okay with that?” She downed the alcohol and looked a little worried.

 

“Yeah,” Dean said with a grin. “Yeah, I think I can be okay with that.” They both got up then and moved to leave. Mary hugged him before they parted. Dean leaned into the doorway for a moment and watched her go before he headed to his room.

 

He pushed open the door and found Cas standing over a duffle bag. Cas turned to him then back to his packing. “Going to take Jack back up to heaven.”

 

Dean stepped up to his side and set a hand on him. “Now?” He could feel his heart rate picking up. He wasn’t sure if Cas could feel his hand shaking, but it was, and he couldn’t stop it. “Why now?”

 

Cas dropped the shirt he was folding into the bag in a heap. Dean looked down at the bag. It was a mess. It was half full of unfolded clothes. _When did Cas start packing clothes?_ But then Dean thought about how long it had been since he’d seen Cas in the familiar suit and coat. It seemed that Cas had learned to appreciate variety lately. Even now, he was wearing one of Dean's old Led Zeppelin shirts and some jeans they picked up the last time they went shopping.

 

Cas interrupted his thoughts, saying, “I kept putting it off, thinking that I needed to be here to take care of the babies, to help you. There was always something. I have to do this though.” He wouldn’t look at Dean. He just kept looking into the bag at the unfolded mess inside of it.

 

Dean reached in and pulled out a shirt. He started folding it. “I understand. It just felt sudden. Did something happen? Is Jack okay?” Dean kept pulling out clothes and folding them. Cas had his hands settled on the sides of the bag, but he didn’t help with the folding.

 

“Jack is fine.”

 

“If he’s fine then why do you need to get him to heaven so fast?”

 

Cas’ eyes snapped to him. “I need to do this, Dean.”

 

Dean stopped folding. “But why?”

 

Cas took a deep breath and seemed to hold it. He started moving the folded clothes back into the bag. “You have enough help now.”

 

“Have more babies too.”

 

The silence settled on them like a weight meant to drag them down and deep. Dean moved in closer to him. Sometimes they could just be close and things would somehow get to a better place. Cas stepped back. He looked up at Dean and said, “So, Mary and Bobby?”

 

“Did he talk to you about it?” Dean asked.

 

“No.” Cas didn’t elaborate. He just stared back at Dean. That one word seemed to hang in the space between them.

 

“Guess it was obvious from the rooming situation.” Dean looked away. Cas’ gaze was too intense.

 

“I came back to the kitchen after setting up the room with Bobby. You and your mom were talking about…” He turned away and finished with, “relationships.”

 

Dean didn’t speak at first. He let the words float around in his head. He wanted to understand. _Did Cas hear the whole conversation?_ “Tell me why you’re upset with me.”

 

“I shouldn’t need to.” He turned back to Dean. “The babies were fed before I put them to bed. They’ll likely wake up around 1:30 though. You should get some sleep before then.” He walked past Dean out into the hall and toward Jack’s room. He didn’t grab the duffle bag though. Dean picked it up and went into the hall. He waited.

 

He could see Castiel’s back as he stood in the doorway to Jack’s room. Jack came out with him, and they made their way down the hall. Jack smiled all big and gummy at Dean as they approached. “Guess we’ll see you in a few days.” Dean plastered on a smile for the kid. “Soon enough Cas won’t have to do this anymore, and everyone will be happy.”

 

Dean cast a glance at Cas. “Thought you were doing this for the kid.”

 

Cas reached out and took the duffle from Dean’s hand. He looked at Dean steadily and said, “No.”

 

Dean reached out and grabbed Cas’ arm as he was about to storm off. Dean was pretty sure he could have broken away. “Jack, give us a minute,” Dean said.

 

“Uh, okay.” Jack moved past them to the main room.

 

“I need to go, Dean.”

 

Dean didn’t let go. “You’re going because you’re mad at me.”

 

“I’m going because I’ve put it off long enough.” He pulled away from Dean’s grasp. “You don’t need me here right now. You’ll survive.”

 

“You’ll come back?” His heart was pounding. Dean could actually imagine Cas saying ‘no’ again. And that ‘no’ would sound like death.

 

Cas took a deep breath and said, “I told you it would only be a week.”

 

“I know that, but you’re mad, and you might not want to be here.”

 

“I’ll come back.”

 

“Promise.”

 

Cas started to reach for Dean’s face, but he stopped. Dean was already leaning in, craving the comfort that only Cas could offer. “I promise.” With that Cas headed down the hall and away.

 

A moment passed, then another. Dean heard them making their way to the garage. He turned and dashed after them. He caught them at the truck that Cas was opening up. He tossed the duffle bag into the back, and Jack was getting in the passenger seat. “Cas!” Dean called from the doorway. Cas turned to him. Dean went to him. “I didn’t mean what I said to my mom. I should have said yes, when she asked.”

 

Cas just stood there and stared at him for a moment. This time when Cas reached out to him, he didn’t pull away. His hand cupped Dean’s cheek, and his thumb ran a lazy arch. He pulled Dean’s head to his, and held him like that, foreheads pressed together. “I’ll be home to you soon.” He pressed a kiss to Dean’s cheek and let him go. He made his way to his side of the truck. Dean watched him drive away.


	8. Full House

In the morning, Dean found Charlie and Sam in the kitchen. They were mixing some ingredients in a bowl. Sam had a spellbook open in front of him. “It should work.”

 

“Whatcha two up to?” Dean asked, and they both jumped. 

 

“Shit, Dean!” Charlie exclaimed. “We should put a bell on you or something.”

 

Dean laughed. “Use to say that to Cas.”

 

“Yeah, speaking of,” Sam began, “What’s up with him and Jack popping off in the middle of the night? Went in to check on Jack when I got up and got a vague note about going to heaven with Cas.”

 

“Yeah, Cas decided that they needed to take care of some stuff.” Dean settled into a seat next to Charlie. Sam loomed over the table and the ingredients.

 

“What sort of stuff?” Sam asked.

 

“You want the story that Cas has been spinning?”

 

“Well, yeah, but if there’s another story maybe you should share that too.” Sam sat down and pushed aside the spell work that they had been doing.

 

“Will that keep?” Dean waved at the bowl.

 

Charlie said, “Oh, yeah. Rowena’s been sleeping for a bit now. Won’t kill her to sleep a bit more.”

 

“So Cas and storytelling,” Sam encouraged.

 

Dean drummed at the table. “You know how he’s been taking Jack to heaven for healing and all that since Luci nearly drained the boy dry?” Sam and Charlie both nodded. “Well, Cas told me that it was necessary because Jack was not doing so well without his grace. He made it sound like Jack was in pain or something.”

 

“Jack seems fine,” Sam said.

 

“Yeah, I know. He seems like a perfectly normal kid. Funny thing though. He doesn’t seem like he’s a perfectly normal, powered down nephilim. He seems like he’s got quite a lot of his mojo back. So, I told myself that maybe he wasn’t feeling so bad anymore because what Cas was doing with him in heaven was working.”

 

“Sounds like a reasonable assumption,” Charlie said.

 

“It does,” Sam added. “So why are you worried?”

 

“I’m worried because I think Cas is hiding something from me. I think something is weird about this whole healing Jack thing. I mean, how do you heal a grace deprived nephilim?” Dean tipped his head back and let out a long held sigh.

 

“Not sure. Cas would be the one to ask though. Maybe when he gets back we can get some answers.” Sam got up and moved the bowl back to the center of the table. He paused in the midst of setting things back right and said, “When Cas lost his grace, he was slowly dying. He had to consume the grace of other angels to get by.

 

“What are you saying?” Dean asked.

 

“I wonder if the angels are feeding Jack their grace in little increments.”

 

“Oh, kinda like Sister Jo was doing for Luci.” Dean got up and ran a hand through his hair. “That might explain why Cas has been needing sleep. Bet he’s been giving more than the others.” Dean turned to Sam. “You’re kinda a genius you know.”

 

Sam shined up his nails on his chest and said, “I know. I’m Sam Fucking Winchester.” They all laughed. 

 

Dean asked, “So what’s up with the spell?”

 

Sam and Charlie shared a look and then Sam answered, “There’s stuff I haven’t told you.”

 

“You mean that Rowena’s pregnant?” Sam looked shocked, and Dean just shrugged. “Cas and I noticed the first night. Figured you’d bring it up when you were ready.”

 

Sam slumped back down into the seat again and said, “The child could be mine.”

 

“Or Gabriel’s,” Dean added. “Or someone else could have fathered the kid. Who knows.”

 

“Yeah, well, if it’s Gabriel, we’ve got more to worry about then,” Sam said.

 

Charlie added, “She sent me off to get some items for a spell. She said that it was complex, but that it was important that she do more than just set up the rejuvenation spell that she used to resurrect herself after her fight with Lucifer.”

 

“She didn’t say why,” Dean asked.

 

“No, we did a lot of stuff that was designed just to get me up to speed. She was of the mindset that I’d make a powerful witch if I had the right teacher.” Charlie lifted a vial of powder up and scooped two spoonfuls into the bowl. “I think she might be right. I’ve been pretty capable with the spells she taught me so far.”

 

“So, is this going to wake her up?” Dean asked.

 

“We hope,” Sam said. “Charlie told me that she was coming here to test something.”

 

Dean looked to Charlie. She said, “We performed a spell before we parted. She seemed fine. She said that she needed to see Sam. She said that she’d know more once she saw him.”

 

“Huh,” Dean got up and paced a bit. “Like maybe whether or not he was the baby daddy?”

 

“Maybe,” Sam practically breathed out.

 

“Hello!” a voice called out from the other room. Dean headed out and the others followed him.

 

Jody and Alex stood in the middle of the room. “‘Bout time you two showed up.” Dean walked up to Jody and wrapped her in a hug. “Missed you.” 

 

Jody said, “Missed you too.” She let him go and hugged Sam, while Dean hugged Alex.

 

“You been doing okay too?” Dean asked.

 

Alex said, “Can’t complain. How’s Claire? She keeps sending texts about all the hard work she’s been doing here.” Alex glanced over her shoulder. “Patience, why are you hovering over there?” Dean hadn’t even seen her. She looked around the space like it was all too much to believe.

 

“You really live here?” Patience said as she came closer.

 

“Yeah, it’s not much, but it’s home,” Dean said.

 

“It’s amazing. Outside it looks like the kind of place you take people before you kill them. Inside it’s like a fancy secret lair.” Patience just kept looking around as she spoke.

 

Sam interrupted, “I’ll give you the tour once we get you all settled in. You’ll be surprised by how much is here.”

 

Charlie said, “Yeah, they even have a dungeon.”

 

“I’m not sure if you’re joking,” Patience said.

 

Sam asked, “Did you bring stuff for Rowena, because we might not need it now? Charlie and I have a spell going. It should bring her around.”

 

“I have the equipment in the car if you need it. We really just wanted to check on you all. A pile of babies and kids showing up sounded interesting,” Alex said.

 

“Interesting is certainly the word for it,” Dean said.

 

* * *

 

The day got away from them, with getting everyone settled in and all the time spent explaining the past month of living. Eventually they all gathered in and near Sam’s room for the spell. It wasn’t too complicated. It was just a lot of set up. When all was said and done, nothing happened. Rowena didn’t wake up, lightning didn’t crack the sky, and no hint of change rattled the room.

 

“Maybe we didn’t do it just right,” Charlie suggested. 

 

“No, it was right. I double checked everything.” Sam fell into his chair and waved everyone out. “Why don’t you all go get dinner ready.” They all took the hint and gave him some time alone. That is, everyone except for Dean.

 

Dean leaned into the doorframe and folded his arms over his chest. “I’m sorry, Sam.”

 

“I really don’t want pity right now. I just wanted this to work.”

 

Dean sighed and came into the room. “I’m still sorry it didn’t work.” He sat on the edge of the bed. 

 

“I just don’t know what to do next. If I could just talk to her…”

 

“It’s Rowena. You know nothing keeps her down for long.” Dean reached out and gave Sam’s knee a squeeze. 

 

Sam stood suddenly. “You see that?”

 

Dean jumped up too. “See what?” He followed Sam’s eyes to Rowena. She was still, just as she had been.

 

Sam reached down and brushed back her hair. He took her hand and gave it a squeeze. “Rowena?”

 

“What happened?” Dean asked. Sam just waved a hand at him to keep him quiet.

 

“Rowena?” Sam tried again. Her eyes fluttered, then they opened wide.

 

“Samuel?” She didn’t move.

 

“I’m here. Tell me you’re okay,” Sam said.

 

“I’m fine, just…” She started to sit up a little. Sam helped her, easing his arm behind her back. She looked around the room. “What am I doing in your room?”

 

“You came to the bunker, and then you passed out,” Dean said.

 

“I don’t remember that.”

 

“What’s the last thing you remember?” Sam asked. 

 

“I remember…” She turned to Sam and stared steadily at him. “I need to speak with you alone for a moment.” She glanced over to Dean who nodded and left.

 

“I already know,” Sam said once they were alone.

 

She set his hand on her stomach. “I guess I am showing a bit.”

 

“I felt it when I scooped you up off the floor.” 

 

“It might not be yours,” she said as she looked up at him.

 

“I know. I was there for the romp with Gabriel.” Sam smiled at her. “Is it just between the two of us then, Gabriel and I?”

 

“Yes.” She threaded her fingers with his. “I have a spell worked out for surviving this if it’s his. I don’t want you to worry.”

 

“I’m trying not to worry.”

 

“If it’s yours I won’t need the spell.”

 

“Better safe than sorry though.”

 

Rowena dipped her head and let it rest against Sam. “I remember feeling like I needed to be here. I was supposed to wait for Charlie to get back with the ingredients for the spell that I’d need to perform. I needed so many things. She’s been so helpful.”

 

“So you just left without telling her and came here?” Sam asked.

 

“I did. I remember that much. I remember driving. I did a spell before, a little witchy paternity test thing. I thought that the baby was Gabriel’s, but I couldn't be sure. So I did the spell, and felt like I had to come here.”

 

“Did the spell make you think it was Gabriel’s?” Sam asked.

 

“No, my desire for power made me think it.”

 

Sam slipped away from her. He faced the far wall. “I guess I understand that.”

 

He could hear the rustle of the bedding as she got up from the bed. He turned, fearing that she’d fall after so long not using her legs. She didn’t though. She came to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. “Oh, Samuel. Don’t think for one moment that I wouldn’t be happy to carry your child.” She tipped her head back and looked up at him. “Separate from all this motherhood, I am a woman that knows what value there is in power, in strength. I never want to lose a child again.” She took a deep breath and added, “And any child of yours would be a force to be reckoned with.”

 

Sam brushed back the hair from her face and said, “No matter what, I’ll make sure you don’t lose this one.”

 

“You’re a good man, Samuel.” Her voice purred out his name. She leaned back into his chest and let him hold her.

 

* * *

 

 

They had a large family dinner a few days later. Dean roamed the halls like a bear. Sam and Rowena took charge of the meal with the help of the children. It was a grand mess, flour on every space. Dean just knew he'd be stuck cleaning most of it later. 

 

The kids seemed happy though. Rowena shared unusual bits of knowledge with them about various plants that held healing power. Deimos said, “We can just heal things on our own. We don’t need plants to do that.”

 

Rowena raised a brow and said, “You’d be surprised what you need and don’t need.” She looked to Rebekah and said, “If I remember right, this darling girl tried to heal me a few days back. It knocked her out flat. Sometimes one must exercise caution while doing good.”

 

Deimos seemed to consider that as he mashed on the dough that would be the top of a rather large chicken pot pie. Phobos was tasked with chopping vegetables. Sam was readying the chicken. Rebekah and Rowena were working on assorted side dishes. It was all rather domestic. Dean just sat in the corner, feeding Ellie. Little Samuel was laying in his bassinet on the table trying to fit his whole fist in his mouth. He was having some success.

 

Dean lifted Ellie to his shoulder and gave her a few pats until a grand belch came forth. Sam laughed and said, “Can tell you’ve had an influence on that one.”

 

Dean said, “Nah, you’re the gassy brother. She must have learned this from you.”

 

Rowena laughed a little and added salt to the dish that she and Rebekah were making. Sam just grumbled. Eventually, Sam asked, “Hear anything from Cas yet?”

 

Dean glared at his back. Rowena said, “Looks like that’s a sore subject.”

 

Dean got up. “No, but you’ll probably hear from him first. That’s how this usually goes.”

 

Sam turned away from his pot and faced Dean. He gave Rowena a look that seemed to communicate that he needed her to take over, because she did just that. Sam followed Dean out of the kitchen with Ellie. He scooped up Samuel’s bassinet as he went. “Forgetting someone?”

 

“No, I just knew you’d follow me.”

 

“Care to explain the Cas comment?”

 

Dean hummed, but didn’t answer right away. He rounded the corner to his room and settled Ellie into her bassinet. “Nothing to explain.”

 

“You had a fight.”

 

Dean rolled his eyes. “Didn’t say that.”

 

“You didn’t have to. It’s written all over your face. I should have seen it before. You’ve been moping and growling at everyone all week. I thought it was just you worrying about what he was up to with Jack.”

 

“Look, it’s nothing. I think I fixed it before he left. I even apologized.”

 

Sam set the baby down. And wiggled his fingers over him. Samuel batted at Sam’s hands and giggled. “You are so cute. Yes you are.” Sam sounded ridiculous. He leaned in closer and made little faces at him. Samuel reached up and got a great big handful of hair. He was delighted with his efforts. “Oh, ouch. No, no. Not the hair.” Sam was not getting away. “A little help, Dean.”

 

Dean started laughing and fell back onto the bed. He whipped out his phone and snapped a picture or seven. “This might be the best.” He laughed again. “Samuel, you are my new favorite.”

 

Then Mary, who happened to be walking by stopped in the doorway. “Oh, Sam.” She came to his rescue.”

 

“No, mom, let this play out. It’s the only way we get him to cut that mop.” Dean had tears rolling down his cheeks now.

 

Mary gently pried the little fingers free, and cooed at the little baby that was now looking rather disappointed with a wrinkle in his forehead. “No need to cry. Here you go,” Mary said as she handed him the little teething toy. He still looked disappointed.

 

“Sam’s gonna have to hand over the hair again. Don’t want him crying, do you?” 

 

Sam just glared at Dean. “Don’t think this is putting me off of our discussion.” Sam crossed his arms over his chest and asked, “So what’d you do to piss Cas off?”

 

Mary piped in, “You and Cas have a fight?”

 

“God damn it,” Dean growled. “Look, I don’t want to talk about it. It’s fine. He and I have some stuff to talk about, but we’re good.”

 

“When did you even have time to fight? After we talked, you went to bed, and he was gone in the morning,” Mary said. Then she leveled her gaze on him and asked, “Is that why he’s not here?”

 

Dean turned away from them both and pressed his forehead to the wall like he could just crush away this entire conversational nightmare. Sam broke the awkward silence. “You should just send up a prayer or something. Tell him that he’s still the angel for you or whatnot.”

 

“What was that?” Mary asked. She spun Dean around to face her. “I was right. You two are…” She waggled her eyebrows at him. 

 

“Damn it, Sam. Why?” Dean groaned.

 

“You didn’t tell her?” Sam asked, all sorts of righteous indignation in his voice. And this was just what Dean needed right now.

 

Mary doubled down on the moment with the mom level of righteous indignation. “Not only did he not tell me, he actually claimed that there was nothing to tell.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “So, what is it Dean? Everyone gets to know except your mom?”

 

He turned away from her again. “It’s not like that.”

 

“Really? Then what’s it like?” She asked.

 

“Maybe I should just let you two have your talk in private,” Sam said as he started to leave.

 

Mary grabbed his arm and kept him in the room. “Oh, no you don’t. If you leave, then how am I to know if I’m getting a tall tale again?”

 

“Mom?” Dean started.

 

“No, I want to know why it is that you don’t think you can trust me?”   
  


Dean sighed. “It’s really not like that.”

 

Sam said, “Mom, Dean hasn’t exactly been talking about him and Cas at all, with any of us. We all just figured…”

 

“Figured?” she asked.

 

“Yeah, it’s been pretty obvious for years, just looking at them that something more was at play. I had to bite my tongue for literal years, mom.”

 

“Sam,” Dean groaned.

 

“Years,” Sam said as he pointed at Dean. “They do this staring thing, and they’re always touching. Oh and if you go to a diner with them, they sit right up next to each other. There can be a whole bunch of room, but they are just right up on each other.” Sam smiled all mischievous and added, “No room for Jesus between these two.”

 

“So you’re saying that I didn’t miss some big announcement?” Mary asked.

 

“Jesus, mom!” Dean was pacing now. “Have I ever struck you as a big announcement type of guy? Ever?”

 

“Well, you do make nice speeches when the need arises.” She shrugged.

 

“Honestly, there hasn’t been anything specific to announce to anyone.” Dean wasn’t facing them, just pacing about wishing they’d all just let it go.

 

“What do you mean?” Sam asked. “You and Cas are, you and Cas, right?”

 

“It’s complicated.” Dean was raking at his hair. “We sleep in this bed, but nothing else really, just sleep. Sometimes he holds my hand while we sleep.”

 

“You’ve… and I can't believe I'm asking this, kissed him though, right?” Mary asked.

 

“On the cheek or on top of his head when he’s sitting somewhere and I’m going to leave,” Dean answered.

 

“Oh, so that’s why you don’t think you have anything to share.” Mary got up and put a hand on his shoulder. “Do you love him?”

 

The silence sat heavy on him. He could feel his pounding heart as it tried to escape, run off clear to the far off mountains. He could run. It was a viable option, but then he remembered the look on Cas’ face the last time he denied what they had between them. God, he didn’t want to hurt him again. He half shrugged as he dipped his head and grumbled out a noise that might have been yes if one were straining to hear it. Mary squeezed his shoulder and dipped her head down to see his face. “Yeah,” Dean said a bit more clearly.

 

“Then all that other stuff is just icing.” She pulled him into a hug and added, “I’m happy you have this. It’s a stupid lonely world without someone to share it with.”

 

Dean hugged her back and said, “You talking about me and Cas or you and Bobby?”

 

She let him go and said, “Both, maybe a little of both.”

 

* * *

 

 

Sometimes it was easy to forget how unusual their lives were. How the dead could find their way back to you, and the laughter filling the halls came from some very powerful beings. It was especially easy to forget in moments like the one they were having, a big old fashioned family dinner that was made in their own kitchen. They all gathered at the war room table and passed plates of steaming food around for each to dish up. Jody and Alex settled in like they’d always been there. Patience still looked at the place like it was full of mysteries. Every now and then Dean noticed that Jody was staring full on at Bobby.

 

“You okay, Jodes,” Dean whispered over to her.

 

“Yeah, it’s just weird seeing him again,” she whispered back. “I mean, I know he’s not our Bobby. But...”

 

“I know what you mean. I’ve had a few moments where I shared something with him not thinking about how he’s not our Bobby. He’s been rather understanding.” Dean reached across the table and squeezed her hand.

 

“He and Mary, huh?” Jody cast a sideways glance at them. Mary was laughing and leaning into Bobby’s space. Someone had said something hilarious, and they’d missed it entirely. Even the kids were laughing. 

 

Dean was pretty sure he’d never seen Phobos or Deimos laugh like this. Dean replied to Jody, “Yeah, that’s a thing to get use to.” He waved over to Sam. “What’s got you all cracking up over there?”

 

Sam was still wheezing. When he finally got control of himself, he said, “Apparently the first night that they had the babies, Charlie decided to help out with the midnight feeding. She apparently did a bang up job of it too. Got the one baby super full of warm milk.”

 

“Like so much milk,” Charlie chimed in.

 

Sam continued, “Then she decided to give little Zeke a good burping. Mind you, mom and Bobby here are totally asleep.” They all start laughing again. Charlie nearly choked on her soda.

 

“I’m so sorry. Can I just say again that I’m so sorry.” Charlie was looking at Mary now. Mary just gave her a little pat on the back.

 

“So she’s got the baby over her shoulder. She starts doing the burp pat, and little Zeke erupts, everywhere.” Sam is cackling now. 

 

Bobby chimed in with, “I don’t get why you think it’s so funny. I was covered in so much vomit. I’m pretty sure the kid pulled it from some alternative dimension. Ain’t no way in hell that much vomit could have come from that tiny baby.” 

 

Mary added, “It was like that movie,  _ The Exorcist _ . You all hear of that movie?”

 

Dean rolled his eyes and said, “It’s a cult classic mom.”   
  


“Well, how am I to know?” She rolled her eyes right back. “It was like that, except not pea soup. We considered burning the place down. It was quite the mess.” Then Mary reached out and said, “Hey, Claire, could you pass some of those biscuits?”

 

Somehow that was the moment that really got Dean. He just started cracking up, eyes wrinkling up around the edges. Claire passed her the biscuits and then tossed one at Dean. He caught it. “Nice try pipsqueak.”

 

Alex laughed now, so Claire threw her own biscuit at her. She caught it. “Gee, thanks Claire. It’s all buttered and everything.”

 

“I miss Jack,” Claire grumped. “At least he knew how to let me have a win every now and then.”

 

“Kids been keeping you too busy?” Dean asked.

 

“They’re great. Jack just made things different.” She pushed some food around. “Any idea when he’ll be back?”

 

Dean shrugged. “Hoping just a few more days.”

 

“That’d be nice,” Claire said. The meal passed with good humor and gentle ribbing. 

 

Jody and Mary got up and started clearing the table at the same time. “Don’t worry about it Jody. I’ve got this.”

 

“It’s the least I can do,” Jody said.

 

They both disappeared into the kitchen. Dean wondered if they’d talk. There were still things in their history that warranted a discussion, but who was he to judge. He wasn’t exactly the poster child for healthy living via conversations. 

 

While on that train of thought, Dean retreated to his room. He tossed himself onto the bed and closed his eyes.  _ Heya Cas. Just checking up on you. Wish you were here. Feels like it’s already been a week, so it feels like you should be here. Told mom about us. Tell Jack that Claire misses him. Said he was the only one around here that lets her win. Come home soon. It’s not the same without you. _

 

* * *

 

 

Dean didn’t hear back from Cas, and the week still passed. He found himself staring up at the landing, expecting him to just walk back in. Rowena came to his side midway through the second week. She sat right next to him and said, “He’ll be home soon.”

 

“You psychic now too?” He was giving the babies tummy time like Cas had before. They were all flailing about a little, arms and legs like wild starfish.

 

“I just have a sense for certain things.” She sat quietly a moment and just looked at him. “You’re worried about some things. Your brows are all angry looking.”

 

“Thanks Rowena. Lots to worry about, don’t you think?” Dean glanced down at her abdomen.

 

“That’s worrying you?” Dean nodded. “Really?”

 

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I worry about that? Why aren’t you worried?” Dean asked.

 

A slight tinkling laugh fell from her lips. “Oh, Dean. There’s just nothing to worry about there. Either it’s your brother’s baby, in which case, I have no problems, or it’s Gabriel’s baby, and I have some spells to get me by. Charlie is proving to be quite adept by the by.”

 

Dean wasn’t to be put off. “And Sam? Do you think he’s doing okay with all of this?”

 

Rowena steppled her fingers under her chin. “Do you think he’s not doing okay? He and I talked, not that it’s any of your business, and he handled the information like a real gentleman.”

 

“That’s not what I mean,” Dean said. “I think he’s quite worried, despite what he may have told you. I think he’s worried that any number of things will go wrong, leaving you dead. Not to mention the idea that he’s about to maybe be a dad.”

 

“Oh Dean of little faith. If Lucifer couldn’t kill me, I doubt a wee baby will do any better.” She leaned over and planted an unexpected kiss on his cheek. “You’re about to be an uncle in one way or another, given your relationship with the pretty angel. Maybe you should try to be a little more supportive.”

 

“I’m plenty supportive. I’m just of the mind that if it can go wrong, it usually does.”

 

Rowena hummed over the words for a moment. “Seems to me that plenty has been going quite nicely of late. Maybe we don’t need to look for something off. Maybe just this once the universe, or an allusive god and his sister are giving us a win. Or maybe we’re giving ourselves a win. Either way, it feels good, and I’d like us all to just enjoy it.”

 

Dean got up and corralled Samuel and Zeke back onto the blanket. “I’m trying Rowena. I just got a feeling that we’re in for something.”

 

“Because of the babies?”

 

“Maybe. It just seems odd that Gabriel would have compelled them all to come here.”

 

“And even I’m here.” Rowena set a hand on her stomach. 

 

“Did you feel like you had to come here?” Dean asked.

 

“I’m not sure, but Gabriel’s dead, so that hardly matters.”

 

The silence dragged a moment. “Are you hoping that Gabriel’s the father?”

 

Rowena looked at him steadily as she answered. “I was. I need the child to be strong. I can’t lose this one.”

 

“You said  _ was _ ,” Dean said.

 

“I did.” A small smile curled up at the corners of her lips. “I’ve come to think that I did not consider nearly enough the merits of Sam Winchester. Your brother is a truly fine specimen.” 

 

“Rowena, ew. Just ew.”

 

“I’m only saying…”

 

“How ‘bout we don’t keep this going.” Dean got up and scooped up Ellie. “Bobby,” Dean hollored off toward the kitchen. Bobby came in. “Gonna get the babies off to bed.”

 

“Guess that’s my cue to take mine.” Bobby took Zeke off to his room. 

 

“I’ll come back for Samuel. Mind watching him a sec?” Dean asked Rowena.

 

“Take all the time you need.” She waved him off.

 

* * *

 

 

Dean had fallen into bed like the weight of the world was pressing him down. He hadn’t slept well since Cas had gone off to heaven. Most nights he’d wake up with a start as the babies cried for their milk. He’d have small threads of dreams that would linger, little scraps of Cas in danger or flames licking at the walls of the bunker, destroying everything and everyone that he loves.

 

It had all become too much for him. At two, the babies should have woken him up, but they didn’t. And when dawn came, Dean finally cracked open his eyes to the dark room. He wasn’t alone. “Good morning, Dean.” Cas’ quiet voice carried over to him. 

 

Dean sat up. Cas was holding one of the babies, Samuel. He was smoothing down the wild mop of hair that the kid was growing. Dean felt his heart pounding. “Cas.”

 

“I’m finally home.” 

 

“Thanks Captain Obvious.” Dean laughed, and Cas shushed him. “How long have you been home?”

 

“Most of the night.” He leaned down and put Samuel back into the bassinet, his little eyes drooping. Cas pressed a gentle kiss to the baby’s forehead, then came to the bed. “You aren’t getting up yet, are you?”

 

“Not unless you are.” Dean moved aside and let Cas crawl under the blankets next to him. They curled around each other, Dean settling his head into the crook of Cas’ arm. “Tell me you won’t be going away again any time soon.”

 

He could feel Cas smile. Cas pressed a kiss into his hair. “I’ve no intention of leaving you again.”

 

Dean waited a moment, and then asked, “Do we have a label for this?”

 

Cas leaned up a little and looked at him. “I don’t know what you mean.”

 

“Everyone just says things like,  _ So you and Cas _ and I don’t know what to say back.” Dean wanted to back pedal. He was pretty sure that he was not ready for any of this conversation, but his sleep muddy brain and the warmth of Cas at his side governed his course.

 

“If they ask, you can tell them that to me, you are everything.” 

 

Dean cupped Cas’ face in his hand. “Fuck, Cas.” He let his thumb trace a lazy stripe over his cheek. Dean leaned in closer, and Cas kissed him just shy of his lips. Dean smiled. “Think you missed the mark a little there, buddy.”

 

“I’m not your buddy,” Cas frowned a little.

 

“Then maybe you should stop kissing me like one.” The edge of Dean’s lip quirked up a little with the pronouncement. Cas took a moment to ease back, memorizing Dean’s features anew. When Cas finally let their lips come together, it was warm and sweet. Dean felt himself falling into it. There was a rush, an electric charge of sorts that coursed through his whole body. Their arms moved around each other, holding on like they feared that some cosmic force would cause them to part. Dean let his lips part for Cas, who seemed to know what to do with the invitation. 

 

Dean let his grip on Cas’ shirt slacken a little bit. He dragged his fingers over muscle and fabric. He intended to dip his fingers beneath the waistband of Cas’ slacks. Slacks that should not have been worn to bed. He would establish some new rules. This would be a clothing free zone, if he had any say. Then Ellie let loose an ear piercing wail. Cas huffed and looked over at the bassinet. “That is just not nice. It’s been ten years, Ellie.”

 

Ellie wailed louder. “I think that’s her way of saying that she really doesn’t care.”

 

“Rude, is what it is,” Cas rolled onto his back. Dean got up and tended to Ellie’s needs and then got her settled back into the bassinet. Cas just watched him. “Maybe Jack will want to bond with them a bit today.”

 

“Or Sam. He needs to gear up for fatherhood.”

 

“All very good ideas.” Cas pulled back the blankets. “Let’s see if we can get you a few more hours of sleep before we have to deal with any of that.”

 

“I’d rather…” Dean started.

 

“No, sleep first.” Cas smoothed back a stray lock of Dean’s hair. “You’ll thank me later.”

 

“I could thank you now.” 

 

Cas just smiled. “Later.” And he kissed Dean’s forehead. Then Dean closed his eyes. A little sleep might be okay. He could humor the angel at least.

 


	9. Best Laid Plans

With Jack and Cas back home, a new peace settled in the bunker. Jody, Charlie and Rowena researched spells for the birth that was fast approaching. Bobby, Mary, and Cas spent a fair amount of time trying to get the babies to crawl. Sam, Claire, Jack, Patience, and Alex spent their time working with the older kids, teaching them practical skills like healing and defense tactics that didn't involve their mojo.

 

This left Dean to float between groups, but usually he found himself at Cas’ side. It was somewhat the same for Sam too. Though Sam was working with the older kids, he often found himself roaming off to the kitchen to join Rowena. It had been a growing thing born out of a moment of offered comfort that had occurred between them, but as time passed, Sam had felt something more between them. It wasn't just about the baby that might be his, but that potential had made him take the time to notice.

 

“Sam,” Claire said. He turned to her. He had escaped to the kitchen again. “Came up with something I wanted to run by you, but you weren't there.”

 

He turned and they walked out together, but not before Rowena shot him a wink. It made him stumble a little. He could hear her laughter in his wake at the reaction. He refocused on Claire. “So, what's up?” They passed the crawling crew, and gave them a wave.

 

Claire rounded the corner to the hall and said, “I wanna talk about it privately in case you say no. Don't wanna get their hopes up.”

 

They entered Claire's room, and she closed the door. “Should I be worried, Claire?”

 

“No, but hear me out before you shoot me down.” She smiled, and Sam thought it looked like a manipulative smile. “So, I was talking with Jack, who by the way, is keeping some sort of a secret from his time with Cas, but that's something for another time.”

 

“Yeah, both of them keep finding new and creative ways to avoid talking about it. Cas just keeps saying that everything's fine now.”

 

Claire nodded and said, “Yeah, Jack too.” She sat on the edge of her bed, and Sam sat next to her. “So I've been talking to him about other stuff while we work with the kids.”

 

“It seems to be going well with all of them. Their healing practice was promising.”

 

Claire nodded again. “It was. Rebekah was deeply motivated when you cut your hand.”

 

Sam smiled and said, “I think she likes me.”

 

“You're definitely the favorite. Hope she won't mind sharing you with Rowena and the new baby.”

 

“I should have the talk with her about being a big sister and all that.”

 

“So you and Rowena?” Claire's question lingered in the quiet.

 

“Too soon to say.” Sam's fingers drummed at his knee. “Not sure if she wants anything like that from me or just protection for the baby.” Sam sighed. “It's a bit complicated.”

 

“I can imagine.” Claire threw an arm over his shoulder in a half hug. “You want it to be more though, right?”

 

Sam side-eyed Claire and asked, “Was this what you pulled me in here to talk about?”

 

Claire let her arm fall. “No, but I can kill two birds with one stone.” They both laughed. “Actually, I wanted to talk about birthdays, particularly, birthday parties.”

 

“Intrigued. Explain.” Sam was glad to move to a clearer subject.

 

“So, Alex had been talking about a party that they had to celebrate her birthday. It was really just a small dinner, family and friends at the house. It was nice though.” Claire folded her hands in front of her. “Well this lead to Patience talking about the birthday parties she had growing up. Guess her dad would go all out.”

 

“She must miss him. I keep hoping that he'll fix things with her.”

 

Claire rolled her eyes. “He's a jerk. I don't get pushing your kid away for just being who they are.”

 

“I think it's more complicated than that. I think he wanted her to push the psychic bits down because he thought it could get her hurt. He loves her in his own way, despite being wrong about how she should live her life.”

 

“Doesn't mean he should just write her off. If he wants to keep her safe, because he loves her, then what good does it do to push her away, tell her never to come home…”

 

Sam set a hand on her shoulder and said, “Claire, love makes people do stupid things.”

 

“I just…” She sighed. “Let's get back to the birthday bits.”

 

“Safer subject.” Sam smiled.

 

“Yeah.” She smiled back. “So, through all the talk of birthdays we learned that Jack had never gotten a birthday party.” Claire leveled her gaze on him. “Now as his family, I think that you'd all be feeling pretty bad about missing the opportunity to celebrate Jack.”

 

“In my defense, things have been complicated with Dean being possessed and a ton of babies joining us.”

 

“Still,” Claire said. “He's two now, Sam. Shouldn't he get a real birthday party with presents, a cake, the pointy party hats?”

 

“What are you saying, Claire. You want us to throw him a party?” Sam asked.

 

“Yeah. I want us to make him a cake, get him some presents, and all that. You think we can all pull this off?” 

 

Sam shrugged and said, “This sounds doable. When should we do it?”

 

“End of the week. Gives us time to prepare.” She sucked in a breath then said, “Which leads me to the next request.”

 

“Oh no, I'm afraid to ask.”

 

“So, once we found out that Jack hadn't had a birthday party, the other kids started asking questions. Well, we learned, not surprisingly that they had never had birthday parties either.”

 

“Oh, this is going to get complicated.”

 

Claire gave him a pat on the back. “Stop worrying. You like complicated.”

 

“What am I about to agree to?” Sam sounded so put upon.

 

“Nothing huge, but we should totally give the kids birthday parties too.”

 

Sam said, “That seems fine.” He got up like they were done and added, “So we’re just gonna have a big party at the end of the week for all of them?”

 

“No, we were thinking…” She paused and then started again, “Well, Alex, Patience, and I were thinking that we should have separate parties for each of them so that they can have their own special days. Maybe we combine Deimos and Phobos, because they do everything together as is, but the others might like getting a separate special day.”

 

“That’s gonna be a lot of work. You’ve noticed how many kids we have now, right?”

 

“Yeah, kinda noticed that. We can do this though, and Sam, just think about it.”

 

“I am thinking about it. It’s gonna be a crap ton of work.”

 

Claire got up and faced him. “They’re kids Sam. They’ve never had a good thing happen to them before they came here. Rebekah had to escape creepy gods and make her way here from Monte Carlo. The babies are so afraid to grow up that they’ve been doing the baby thing for years. And Phobos and Deimos…” She sighed. “Those two don’t even know what it is to be regular little boys. They’ve only known survival and violence and loss. I want them to all have something good, something that makes them feel special and loved.”

 

Sam pulled her into a hug and said, “Then we’ll do just that.” He pressed a kiss into her hair. “I’m glad you thought of it.” He thought about the many ways that the kids had suffered. He had managed to push so much aside. It was a lot to think about. “I’m gonna need you to help me get everyone on board with this. The planning alone is going to be immense.”

 

“You got it.”

 

\---

 

They decided that Jack’s birthday needed to be celebrated at night and outside. Jack had been talking a lot about stars lately, and the many universes that stretched out overhead. Sometimes he’d just go outside at night and stare at the sky with a wide smile on his face. Claire had made a note of it. 

 

The other thing that they decided was to make the cake for Jack themselves. Dean got to watch that unfold. He had to bite his tongue several times as they shrieked and made a mess of his kitchen. They’d managed to get Jack busy with the kids in the gym, so he wouldn’t suspect a thing. 

 

They were putting in so much baking soda. Dean got up, but a look from Claire shot him back into his seat. Patience and Alex were melting chocolate to add to the mix.  _ That’s not how you do this. _ Dean thought about how bad it would taste and began making plans for how to fix it all. Then Rowena came in. “Well, hello there ladies.” She walked up to the counter and peered into the mixing bowl full of the batter that Dean knew would be bitter and harsh. “Hmm, this looks like it has been a lot of fun for you ladies.”

 

“It has,” Patience said. She started pouring the melted chocolate into the batter, the batter that had eggs in it, the batter that now began to cook. The girls didn’t notice, too happy with the process and the idea of the surprise.

 

Dean noticed a change in the room, an electric vibe that almost seemed to crackle. He got up and stared at Rowena and the girls. In a smooth, Stepford Wives’ manner they each smiled broadly, turned and walked out of the room. Dean asked, “Where are you all going?”

 

“To go help Jack,” they all replied together.

 

Rowena said, “Don’t worry.” The girls left the kitchen. “I had to do it Dean. Did you see the mess they were making for that lovely boy?” Dean still looked worried. “I promise, the spell will wear off in about an hour, and they’ll think the lovely cake in the oven is their doing.”

 

“They’ll be okay?” Dean asked.

 

“Of course, and none of us will die from food poisoning. Now come help me make this edible.” She waved at the mess and Dean joined her. An hour later, they had the good batter in the oven baking away, and the girls returned to the kitchen. They complimented each other for the lovely smells coming from the oven. Dean and Rowena just sat at the table containing their laughter. 

 

The other adults had their fair share of work to do as well. Sam and Jody were setting up the outdoor celebration area, and Bobby, Cas, and Mary were tasked with picking up gifts from a long list that everyone had compiled. This left Dean and Rowena on baby duty and kitchen monitoring.

 

Dean had the babies in a row of swings happily gurgling when the girls finally pulled the cakes out of the oven. Rowena was encouraging little Samuel to reach out his arms by making little puffs of purple light dance in front of him. “We can each frost a layer to make it go faster.” They heard one of the girls say.

 

“They just pulled it out of the oven, right?” Rowena asked Dean.

 

“Like seconds ago,” he replied.

 

“I’ll go check on them,” Rowena said as she got up from the blanket.

 

Dean watched after Rowena. A few seconds later and the girls began wandering out of the kitchen again and toward their rooms. Dean stood, shaking his head. “That bad, huh?” He scored Samuel out of his swing and settled the baby on his hip.

 

“So bad, Dean.” She waved a hand over the open containers of frosting, each a different flavor.

 

“How long will they be out this time?”

 

“Maybe another hour. Can we even make this a decent cake in an hour?” She looked a little defeated.

 

Dean shrugged. “It ain’t rocket science. It’s cake. Plus, you have that magic mojo.”

 

“Yes, I do, but the cake should look like something that they could make. If I meddle too much, it’ll look like art.”

 

“Bit full of yourself there.” Dean laughed as he shifted Samuel to his other hip.

 

“I just know me.” She threw her arms out at her sides and said, “Well fine then.” She muttered something and the purple lights danced above the cakes. They swirled and dipped and darted all around the room. The babies watched with delight. “Get Samuel back in the swing so you can help.”

 

“Aye aye captain.” Dean did as he was told and came back to her.

 

She caused the little purple lights that she made to dance over the heads of the babies like a magical mobile. Rowena used her magic to cool the cakes, allowing Dean to move on to the next phase. Dean layered each tier of the cake with an open container of buttercream frosting.

 

He hummed as he worked, and Rowena did the same. She was making something that looked like melted white chocolate but only at first. Dean thought about all of Claire's plans for this cake. She'd detailed them earlier in the week. The two of them had been binge watching episodes of _Sugar_ _Rush_ and talking smack. It was easy enough to do that with confidence when you didn't have to put your money where your mouth was.

 

Claire believed that they'd be able to reproduce a cake that they'd seen on the baking program that looked like a galaxy. Dean had his doubts. He even voiced those doubts. This was how he got sidelined during the process. He did go shopping for them though, even getting fondant and such. 

 

Rowena's chocolate was now a many colored thing. “When you get the tiers stacked, I'll pour this over it all. It should cover it nicely.”

 

“Why are you doing this?” Dean asked as he pressed the dowels into the cake to hold the tiers. 

 

“That boy deserves better than he got.” Rowena was concentrating on the bowl in front of her.

 

“You don't even know him.” Dean started stacking the layers. “Plus, he's got us. Seems like he didn't do too bad.”

 

“Lucifer hurts people in far deeper ways than you might realize. Jack will carry those hurts forever. Having you all as family will help, but it won't erase what was done.”

 

Dean finished the cake and motioned her over. He set it on a mesh tray that was over a pan. This way when Rowena poured the chocolate, it would run over the whole thing and into the pan. She was holding the bowl and blowing a very frosty bit of air over the top of it. The colorful chocolate mix seemed to thicken. She began pouring, and Dean waited to respond to her earlier comment. He didn’t want to mess up the process.

 

When she finished pouring, it looked amazing. The colors in the chocolate looked more like a magical night sky, than anything edible. There was even a metallic shimmer in the deep blues and purples that made up the shiny, iridescent coating. They stared at it a bit before Dean spoke. “Is all this because of what Lucifer did to you?”

 

She slowly set down the bowl. “I still have nightmares. He’s in my head even now. I sometimes think that he’ll find his way back, or that some fool will bring him back. He had that boy. Took him away from you for long enough to tell him things, to make him feel. Then he cut his throat and drained him. The boy looks older, and I think everyone sees him as some quirky teenager. He’s not. He’s a tortured toddler in a teenaged body. And he’s hurting so much that sometimes I can feel it rolling off of him.”

 

“You’ve never let other people’s issues bother you before.” He noticed the shift in her appearance and added, “I mean, you have been wonderful lately, way helpful. It’s just that I don’t remember you ever seeming rattled by something that wasn’t really about you.”

 

Rowena sighed and pressed her hands to the counter. “Let’s just say I see things differently now.” She looked up from the counter to Dean. “I lost Fergus. Lucifer took that boy from me, but worse than that, I threw him away even before. Look what that accomplished. I’m a failure as a mother, and here I am about to be one again. I never got to fix that with Fergus, never got the chance to make it right, because it was all about my goals, my desires. So here I am, with a shot at fixing something for a kid that couldn’t be any more different from Fergus, and I want to help. Maybe if I’d stayed when he was younger, Fergus would have been like Jack. Maybe he was that innocent once.”

 

Dean laughed, “Doubtful.”

 

Rowena laughed too. “You’re probably right on that score, dearie.” She settled a hand on her rather large stomach. “It’ll be soon.”

 

Dean’s brows scrunched up. Concern ticked the edges of his lips down into an almost frown. “Are you worried?”

 

“About dying?” She looked past him to the doorway. No one was there. “Not exactly.”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“I’m worried about failing. I have it all worked out, but any number of things could happen. I just…” Dean could see her hand shake a little on her stomach. “What if I’m just as bad a mother to him as I was to Fergus? What if I mess this up too?”

 

Dean pulled her into a hug. It was odd to think that he was attempting to comfort this woman that a few months ago he didn’t really like so much, but here he was. “I half expect that if I could see your face right now that you’d be smiling about making me like you a little.” He could feel her shake with a little laughter. “It’s fine if all this is some sort of manipulation. I see you Rowena. And if it’s not, if you were somewhat sincere there, just know that we’re here to help. You don’t have to do this alone like you did before.”

 

He smoothed his hand over her back and she said, “I can’t see why you’d all want yet another baby here.”

 

Dean pulled back from her a little and she looked up at him. Some tears had streaked her cheeks. “You’re ridiculous.”

 

“Oh, because it might be Sam’s.” She wiped at her cheeks.

 

“No, because it’s what we do. Have you missed the memo about all the wayward children being welcome here? If the kid’s Gabe’s, he or she will fit right in. If the kid’s Sam’s it’ll be the same and a whole lot safer for you.”

 

This time she hugged him. “I use to hate you so much.”

 

“Same.”

 

They both laughed and parted again. “Are you angry with me for making Sam’s life complicated?”

 

“Not sure if you noticed, but our lives have never been free of complications. Just look around this place. We got magic purple lights floating over nephilim babies and in the other room you’ll find a bunch of people that have died and been resurrected working alongside doppelgangers from another dimension. We don’t know what normal is, and that’s okay.”

 

“Yes, but Sam…”

 

“Are you planning to pursue something there?” Dean asked with a smile.

 

“I don’t know. He has interest in me because I’m carrying his child, maybe.”

 

“I think it’s more than that,” Dean said.

 

“Not likely. He’s a good man, but we only ended up together because of too much alcohol and reminiscence over shared trauma. That’s not how you start a relationship.”

 

“And if Gabriel were here?” Dean asked.

 

“I’d ask him to make sure I didn’t die.” Rowena shrugged.

 

“I mean, would you rather pick up where you left off with him?”

 

She laughed and said, “What? Get me another quick shag in a broom closet. It was fast and furious and definitely not the stuff to build a relationship upon.”

 

“So you’re not pursuing anything with Sam, and Gabe was a one hit wonder that’s now dead.”

 

“Yep, I don’t think I’m much good at relationships. This is about all the sappy talk I can stomach.”

 

Dean laughed, “Yeah, I get that.”

 

Their talk was interrupted by the girls coming back into the kitchen. They swarmed around “their” cake and praised each other for a job well-done. Dean and Rowena retreated and watched them. They grinned away at the job well-done too.

 

* * *

 

 

Night fell, and Claire was sent to retrieve Jack and the kids. Everyone was already outside around the table that was covered in decorations. Claire and the girls strung lights from trees. Everyone else worked to get the cake and tables set up for the main event. There was even an old guitar leaning up against the side of the table, and Dean was left wondering who was planning to play.

 

Deimos came running up to them first and said, “Claire sent me ahead. They’re coming.” He was grinning ear to ear and wearing a white polo shirt and board shorts. He looked like he belonged at the country club. Dean wondered who had done this bit of shopping for him.

 

Cas was at his side, and Dean felt the need to thread their fingers together. Moments later and they could see Claire dragging Jack into view. All together everyone yelled, “Happy Birthday!” Then they started singing. Jack looked rather confused.

 

Sam walked up to him and pulled him into a hug. “We figured, better late than never.” Sam let him go and smiled down at him. Jack’s own smile slowly bloomed on his face. “Figured we owed you a real birthday party with all the trimmings. Claire was quite the organizer.”

 

“Had a lot of help,” Claire chimed in, throwing an arm over Jack’s shoulder.

 

“This is all for me?” Jack asked in a near whisper.

 

“Course it is,” Claire said, “And we even baked you an awesome cake. Come see,” she added as she pulled him along toward the table. Everybody milled around. The children played some sort of tag game. The babies were held by various people, and passed back to Dean, Cas, Mary or Bobby when they became too much. 

 

The night felt full of magic. They eventually cut into the cake. The girls enjoyed all the praise for the baking effort. Mary picked up the guitar and started playing some soft songs. Claire gave Alex a little bit and an outstretched hand. They began to dance. Patience dragged Jack out next to them, and they danced too.

 

Cas leaned into Dean's neck and kissed him softly just below his ear. “Are you finally done worrying about this party?” Cas asked.

 

“Until the next one.” Dean dragged his fingers lightly over Cas’ arm, feeling the little goose bumps there. Cas was dressed down in a t-shirt shirt and jeans. Everything clung to the shape of him, and Dean mightily approved.

 

“So you'll be tired?” Cas asked. 

 

Dean raised an eyebrow. “Not likely. Feeling full of energy.” Dean glanced out at the dancers. “Too bad I don't dance much. I really need an outlet for all this.”

 

Cas pulled him tight against his chest. “Perhaps I can help.” They swayed a little, Dean's hands resting Cas’ hips now. Dean could feel every hard line of him. 

 

“How much are you allowed to help?” Dean asked. Cas’ body seemed like it wanted to help a great deal. Dean rolled his hips against Cas’ and heard Cas’ breath stutter.

 

“I follow no rules except for those that what we make. No one has to allow me this except you.”

 

Dean tipped his head to the side. “So, correct me if I'm wrong, but angels use to get killed for excessively fraternizing with humans. You even called it an abomination.”

 

Cas leaned in and kissed the bolt of Dean's jaw. “That was different for many reasons.”

 

Dean was having trouble focusing, his own body growing harder against the press of Cas. All of his focus seemed to zero in on the warmth of Cas’ breath on his neck, the way Cas’ fingers moved over the muscles of his back. Dean found words in the midst of distraction. “Different how?”

 

Cas sighed and pressed his head into Dean's shoulder. “It's about consent and power. The angel to human power dynamic makes it hard for a human to feel truly at ease enough to give full consent.”

 

“And clearly that's not an issue for me.” Dean smiled into the fluff of Cas’ messy hair.

 

“You've never been fully intimidated by my power. I'd say you found it more…” Cas seemed to consider the million or so words at his disposal before settling on, “stimulating.”

 

“You saying I think your power is a turn on?” Dean smirked.

 

Cas leaned back, eyebrow raised. “You absolutely do.” And a devilish grin ticked up at the corners of Cas’ lips, so Dean had to kiss that smile down.

 

“And the consent part isn't an issue as I'm on board with this.” Dean waved his fingers around over them.

 

“It's not just the human that had to consent. The vessel has to consent too. This body is all mine though, so consent is not an issue.”

 

“So not an abomination?” Dean asked.

 

“Not even a little. I saw to all of the issues.” Cas traced a path up the side of Dean's rib cage. He rolled his hips. Dean's breath rattled out all shaky.

 

Something nibbled at his mind though. “There were issues beyond consent and power?”

 

Cas sighed. “You worry too much.”

 

Dean stepped back. “Tell me what you did.”

 

Cas looked guilty. “I just took care of anything that could stand in our way. Heaven and what's left of the host won't pay us any mind if we want to be intimate with each other. I can be here, not divided between there and here.”

 

Dean felt his body lose the arousal as fear took over. “Tell me what you did.” 

 

Cas didn't answer. He just looked down at the ground between them. Jody came over, happiness rolling off her with each step. “You boys know this is a kid's birthday party right?” She threw an arm over Dean's shoulder. She pulled him closer, then threw an arm over Cas’ shoulder too. “So which one of you will dance with me?”

 

Cas said, “I’d be happy to.” Dean glared at him as he pulled her away a little. “Dean doesn't dance”

 

Dean waved them off. He started after Cas, who kept looking at him over Jody's shoulder.  _ What the hell did you do? _


	10. Distraction

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just reposted with the edits made, sorry if you read it before, as there were some issues. Hope everyone's DCBB claims are going well, and that you've found distraction as I have. This chapter has gotten me through the waiting. Hope you all don't mind:)

And when it rains, it absolutely pours. Dean slept on the couch in his little entertainment room, taking Samuel out to the area with him, so that Cas would only have to deal with one baby waking him up in the night. He didn’t even give Cas the chance to explain. Dean knew that he wouldn’t, so why bother. It was frustrating, knowing that something was wrong while being so clueless about what that something was.

 

“Dean,” Cas was standing over the back of the couch, where Dean was fully committed, blankets and all.

 

“What?” Dean said in his most put upon whisper. Samuel was asleep, and he wasn’t about to wake him.

 

“What are you doing?” Cas crossed his arms over his chest.

 

“Sleeping. What’s it look like?”

 

Cas rolled his eyes. “You have a perfectly lovely bed. Why are you sleeping here?”

 

Dean didn’t want to answer. He wanted to sleep on the couch so he could avoid the run around that this conversation was heading toward. Life however, did not move along with Dean Winchester’s plans. Castiel came around the couch and decided that with no room to sit, he’d just climb up onto Dean. With one leg on either side of Dean’s hips, Dean would have a hard time in no time.

 

“Cas,” Dean started. Cas didn’t get up. “We live with a lot of people.”

 

“So what.” Cas somehow settled in deeper. “You want privacy, then come to bed.”

 

“I don’t like being lied to,” Dean said. He felt a small measure of pride in himself for his ability to avoid being entirely distracted.

 

Cas came down closer to Dean’s face, which just caused a bit of grinding that Dean did not need right now. “I haven’t lied to you.”

 

“You aren’t telling me what happened, what you did. You’re talking around whatever it was, and you’re avoiding the conversations whenever I try to go there.”

 

“I like the peaceful way it’s been between us. So sue me if I want to keep it that way.” Cas nuzzled into Dean’s neck. Dean felt the graze of teeth and lips. “I made things better.”

 

“But you won’t tell me what you did, because you think I’ll be mad.”

 

“I don’t think you’ll be mad.” Cas sighed and sat up. Dean was about to speak again, argue with him even. “I know you’ll be mad.”

 

Dean pushed Cas back and extricated his legs from under him. “So you just figured you’d seduce me into not caring?”

 

“Something like that,” Cas said with a grin. The grin fell though, when he noticed how irritated Dean looked.

 

Dean raked his hands up into his hair and said, “Cas, haven’t we had enough fucking mysteries hanging over our heads? I mean, just when I started thinking that everything was finally okay, all these kids start showing up. Don’t get me wrong. I love each and every one of them, but every day I’m waiting for someone to yank the rug out from under us all. And that’s just the thing, I never get to just love something. It never lasts. Some god damn mystery always crawls into my world and eats away at all the good things.”

 

“I won’t let anything hurt those kids Dean. I love them too.” Cas sounded earnest. He set his hand on Dean’s arm, his thumb stroking a long arch over the muscles there.

 

“I’m not just talking about them.” Dean couldn’t look at him. He just stared off at the far wall.

 

“What do you mean then?”

 

“I mean that I’m tired of loving you and worrying that at any moment I could lose you again.” 

 

There was silence between them that stretched on for years, or maybe it was just seconds. It made Dean finally look at Cas though. There was something in the way he was looking at Dean with his eyes glistening just a little that made Dean reach for him and pull him into his side. “You said that you love me.”

 

“You already knew that.”

 

“You’ve never said it.” Cas wrapped his arms around Dean’s waist. They laid back into the couch together. It was a tight fit, but it felt nice to have the closeness. “I love you too. I love you more than I was ever allowed to love you. I love you more than any one person ever loved another.”

 

“You’re sappy.”

 

“You love me.” Cas tipped his head back to really look at Dean.

 

“Yeah.” Dean leaned and pressed a kiss to Castiel’s head.

 

A beat passed then another. “I love you.”

 

“You maybe said that.” Dean carded his fingers through Cas’ hair. “So tell me what you did, so I stop worrying. I’ll try my best not to be mad.”

 

“You’ll be mad, and you won’t even try to hear reason.” 

 

“Please, Cas.”

 

A moment passed. Dean could feel each breath from Cas as he laid pressed up against Dean’s side. Then he spoke. “Like I said, I love you. And like I said when we were dancing, I made sure that nothing would come between us. Heaven had a hold on me. I couldn’t be yours if I was part of the host. Any act with you would be an abomination, a power play that would be punishable by death.”

 

“There aren’t enough angels to make that happen anymore,” Dean said. “Besides, we’ve been breaking some rules already and the angels haven’t been breaking down my door.”

 

“True, but that’s because I was already making the choice that has lead me to this moment.” He took a deep breath and said, “I’ve fallen Dean. I’m human now.”

 

Dean let him go so he could look at him better. “No,” Dean barely breathed out.

 

“I know you have feelings about this. I didn’t want to worry you. I also didn’t want to discuss this with you, because it wasn’t your decision. It was mine.”

 

Dean shook his head. “You should have told me. I never wanted you to throw away part of yourself for me. You shouldn’t have to…”

 

Cas stopped him, taking his face in his hands. “Not just for you, but for Jack too. I gave him my grace, and he is stronger than ever. He’s better because of me.”

 

“He was healing on his own though, and he was happy enough to be human.”

 

“No, he wasn’t. He felt like something was missing. He felt like something cold was pressing down on him day in and day out. That’s what it is to lose your grace.” Cas hadn’t let go of Dean’s face.

 

“So now you get to feel that cold weight pressing you down, and for what? To be with me.”

 

“I don’t feel like he did. I feel free. I love you, and everything feels finally, finally right. Don’t you feel it Dean? Don’t you feel like we can finally just be happy?”

 

Dean looked at him, really looked at him and breathed out, “Are you happy?”

 

“Yes.” Castiel sucked in a deep breath and held it for a moment before asking, “Are you?”

 

Dean nodded just slightly. “Still mad at you, but I guess that’s just par for the course.”

 

“Don’t see why.”

 

“I’ve never been a fan of people having to make sacrifices for me. It never goes well for them or the world. I especially don’t think that you should have to cast off part of yourself to be with me. Seems unfair.”

 

“Well, it’s done, and I just hope you’ll figure out how to accept me as I am now.” Cas got up and started pacing. “I worried that I’d be less than what you needed if I did this.”

 

Dean got up and moved into his path. He pulled him into a kiss that was so deep that Cas seemed to lose the ability to stand on his own. His legs buckled and his arms held on. Dean finally let him breathe and said, “You,” he pressed a finger to Cas’ chest. “You, will always be enough and everything I need. Grace or not, I want you.”

 

“Thank you,” Cas said. It was a rather polite response.

 

“Would it be too ambitious to try taking this to the bedroom now?” Dean waggled his eyebrows.

 

“The babies will wake up at the most inopportune moment.”

 

“Well, shit.” They swayed together. “Who can we hand them off to?” 

 

“Rowena and Sam need the practice. She’s due any day.” They swayed over to the couch again and sat.

 

“That would just be rude.” Dean laughed though and considered it. Before his thoughts could go too far down that path, Jody came into the room from the hall, phone in hand. “Jodes,” Dean said as he stood back up again.

 

“Dean, went to your room but you guys weren’t there.” 

 

“Everything okay?” Cas asked as she came to Dean’s side. 

 

“I don’t know. No, maybe.” She was pacing now. “We were gonna head home tomorrow. Donna was already at the house. She was just checking on things since we’ve been gone so long.”

 

“Is she okay,” Dean interrupted.

 

“Donna’s fine.” Jody didn’t sound convincing though. “She found someone at the house.”

 

“Who?” Dean and Cas asked at the same time.

 

“Kaia,” Jody said. “And she’s bringing her here.”

 

“But she’s dead,” Dean said.

 

“I’m guessing not so much.” Jody sat down now in a heap. 

 

“Shifter?” Cas asked, taking a seat next to her.

 

“I asked all the usual questions. Donna’s a professional. She checked. It’s Kaia, or at least not a monster that we can test for.”

 

Dean was pacing now. “So Donna just found her skulking around your house and said hey let’s go to the bunker?”

 

“No, that’s where it get’s weird.” Jody reached out to Dean and he stopped pacing and came to sit next to her. “When Donna found her in the garage, Kaia said, ‘I need you to take me to Sam and Dean.’”

 

“Okay, that’s not entirely weird. We did know each other,” Dean said.

 

“Yeah, but she said more.” Jody’s fingers squeezed a little around Dean’s hand. “She said that she was told to find you both, and that you’d protect her.” Dean looked past her to Cas. “I know, sounds familiar right?”

 

“Too familiar,” Cas said.

 

* * *

 

 

Rowena was in Sam’s bed. And though they weren’t sharing the space, Sam was sitting on the chair across from her. They’d been talking about the day, about the party and how happy Jack seemed. She told Sam about the cake and the time spent with Dean. It made Sam happy to know that the two of them had gotten over at least one hurdle. 

 

She looked tired now, and he knew he should leave and let her sleep, but he just couldn’t. “You worrying?”

 

“A little.” Sam dragged a hand through his long mop of hair. 

 

“Never cut it.” She sat up in the bed and faced him. She reached out and let her fingers slide through his hair. 

 

“Dean hates it, so I’ll, at the very least, keep it just to spite him.” Sam laughed.

 

“So why are you worrying? I’m fine, Sam.” She leaned in closer.

 

“You should lay down, get some rest.”

 

“Only if you lay down with me. You aren’t going to sit there watching me.”

 

“I wasn’t doing that.”

 

“It’s creepy, Sam, and that’s exactly what you were doing.” She closed the gap between them and kissed him lightly. “I know you’re worried, so you might as well just sleep right here next to us. I won’t bite. I promise.” She smiled and moved further into the bed, patting the space beside her. 

 

Sam got up and joined her. “I’m just worried that I won’t hear you call if you start going into labor.”

 

“You’ve been checking up on me every night. Don’t think I don’t see you . You check on everyone. You’d hear me if I went into labor. I promise.” She took his hand in hers and smiled. “Are you really going to sleep next to me with your jeans on?”

 

“I’m going to pretend to sleep next to you with my jeans on.” Sam turned to her a little and smiled.

 

“You’ve got nothing to hide from me, Samuel. I’ve already seen every blessed bit of you.”

 

Sam felt his cheeks flare up with the comment. He cleared his throat. “I’m not here to take advantage of you. I just need to know you’re safe.”

 

“It wouldn’t be taking advantage if I was willing.” She adjusted her position, bringing her body closer to his. Sam rolled onto his side and faced her. Rowena added, “And some people say that sex helps the labor get started.”

 

Sam’s brows came together. He looked even more worried than he did before. “Then we certainly shouldn’t do that.”

 

“Oh,” Rowena squeezed his hand. “You’re not ready for that.”

 

“I’m not ready for what might happen to you if this baby is Gabriel’s. I don’t think any of us has done enough research, and time is running out.” He reached out to her face and brushed back a stray strand of hair. “I don’t understand how you can be so calm.”

 

She shrugged. “I did a spell before I came here. I wanted to determine who the baby’s father is.”

 

“The spell that rendered you unconscious just as soon as you got here?”

 

Rowena nodded. “That’s the one. It was meant to make the connection clear.” She moved closer, and nuzzled into the crook of Sam’s arm. He adjusted to make her comfortable. “I thought that you were the one. I mean, I felt compelled to come right here, like something was tugging on my whole body. Then when I saw you, it all eased up. It felt like I’d made it home, like I’d finally be safe.”

 

“What do you think that means now?” Sam asked.

 

“I think it was inconclusive. All of the children were compelled to this place so that you’d protect them, you and Dean. I could have been drawn here for the same reason. Still, it could have just been my spell that brought me to you. I’m not sure.”

 

Sam let his fingers trace lazy shapes on her upper arm. “I know that you want the baby to be Gabriel’s. I know that you want the power that would come from that, but…” Sam pressed his head back and closed his eyes before continuing. “I want this baby to be mine. I want this so much it’s all I can think about.”

 

She breathed a ragged little breath out and said, “I use to want that. I use to want Gabriel’s child. I thought about the power that would come from that, not just for me but for the child too. I don’t want my child to be weak.” She rolled a little onto her side, which pushed Sam away a little due to her rather large stomach. She reached out to him and cupped his face, directing his gaze onto her. “I don’t want this baby to be his anymore. I want this child to belong to you. You’d be everything good for this child, and you’d make up for all my imperfect parenting. I know it’s wrong for me to want this situation for you, but I do want you to be the father.”

 

Sam let his hand slide down to her stomach. His fingers fanned out there. He rested his forehead against hers. “For the record, I have other reasons for wanting this child to be mine.”

 

“What might those reasons be?” Rowena asked in a whisper.

 

“I want you to be safe. I want you to live. I want…” Sam let the sentence just die. He didn't seem to know what he could ask for from her or even what he could feel.

 

She seemed to understand though and took his face in her hand. “Then I guess I better live, because I maybe have some things I want too.”

 

* * *

 

 

They had plenty to occupy them in the morning. They decided to celebrate the twins next. Claire had been noting their favorite things from what they'd been exposed to. The list was eclectic. They liked the color red, the idea of pinatas, pumpkin curry, fire, and mangos.

 

She had learned of their favorite color from the gym. They always chose the red mat for their tumbling exercises. She learned that they liked pinatas when she showed them a YouTube video of some children hitting one. They got incredibly excited, just like the kids on the screen, when the candy fell out.

 

Jack even introduced them to candy, which may have been a mistake. He gave them each some Three Musketeers. Thankfully they were the mini ones. The kids were wild after that and wouldn't stop talking about the candy. Jack said it was the nougat. He said it was the best thing ever made. Claire begged to differ, but was overruled.

 

Sam was the one who discovered their food preferences. He made the pumpkin curry that everyone raved about, well everyone except for Dean. Dean was always looking to complain about Sam's food choices though, and he managed to eat three helpings of the curry.

 

The boys barely talked as they shoveled spoonful after spoonful into their mouths. Then, at the end of the meal, Patience brought out some fresh cut mangoes. It was a good meal, worthy of a repeat.

 

Lastly, Claire knew that they liked fire. Sometimes they'd make little fire balls in their hands that they'd quickly extinguish once they knew they were being watched. They made impossible shapes with the fire, and even tossed fire back and forth between them like it was a ball. Claire figured they could roast s’mores over a bonfire or something, pair a new thing with something they already like.

 

Claire came to the kitchen to find Dean already at work on the cake. “Need any help?”

 

“Nope, but you can keep me company.” Dean motioned to the stool that was on the other side of the counter.

 

“You're sure starting early. Afraid your cake won't be as good as the one we made for Jack?” Her lips curled up into a smile. She was quite proud of that cake. No one could have done better.

 

“”I have to start early so Sam and Patience can use this room.”

 

“Ah, guess that makes sense. Sure glad Jody decided to put off going home.”

 

Dean looked at her with a raised brow. “She talked to you about that already?” He was lining the cake pans with parchment. 

 

“Of course. She didn't want to miss the party. Said one more day wouldn't hurt.” She shrugged and added, “After all, many hands make light work or something.” She was cheerful, hands drumming at the counter, curls hanging over her shoulders.

 

Dean seemed to just concentrate on his task. “Well, we're always glad to have her around. The place would kinda feel empty with all of them gone.” There was something serious in his tone, but Claire didn’t pursue it.

 

“Yeah, too bad real life always had to get in the way. I use to have a hard time understanding them.”

 

Dean looked at her with a raised brow. “What do you mean?”

 

“Just the domestic stuff. Jodes is still doing the 9 to 5 as a sheriff, and Alex works at the hospital.” She sighed and started mushing the plastic wrapped lump of marzipan that Dean had set off to the side.

 

“Don't mess with that too much.” Dean side-eyed the lump. “I’m going to flatten it and layer it over the cake like fondant. It’s called a princess cake, but you shouldn’t judge a cake by its name.”

 

“Okay.” Claire pushed the lump aside. “Use to think of this place as all business” She laughed. “Then the kids started showing up. Then I came here, and it's all domestic all the time.”

 

“So you get it now?” Dean smiled at her.

 

“More than before. I just couldn't see how we could work normal jobs when there were monsters to kill.” Claire got up and paced a little.

 

“Are you going stir crazy here?”

 

She turned to him with a smile. “Weird thing, not even a little. The kids make it different, and because of them, I think I get what it all means to Jody when we're back home.”

 

“Yeah,” Dean said as he started adding color to the marzipan. It was becoming a bright red. He had another one off to the side that was orange. “Sometimes it’s easy to forget that.”

 

Claire came around the counter and gave him a hug that pinned his arms a little, keeping him from being able to continue with the cake prep. “Thanks for making things better.” She let him go and headed for the exit. “Try not to feel bad when your cake isn't as good as mine.” She smirked and left.

 

* * *

 

 

By mid afternoon Dean was done with the cake and had managed to spend time with the kids. He was back in the kitchen though, watching Sam and Rowena preparing the dinner while Patience and Alex worked on the side dishes.

 

Dean had a giant sandwich in front of himself and a mighty hunger. Cas sat right next to him with a sandwich of his own, completely oblivious to the picture he was presenting with each moan filled bite.

 

Dean felt the warmth of Cas’ knee pressed against his own and wondered how much longer they'd be doing the celibate life partners thing. He was fine with taking things slowly, but a decade of knowing each other without going the distance is more than taking things slowly.

 

He had to remind himself that the decade wasn't entirely made up of rainbows and love songs. It was a whole lot of blood and dying. So slow made some sense. He wondered if Cas liked the pace. His mind drifted over to the night of Jack's party, the way Cas felt all pressed up against him, the way he breathed affection into each touch, the taste of him. 

 

Before his thoughts could make things uncomfortable, he started scarfing down his sandwich. Cas was watching him. Then Cas’ hand slid over onto Dean's thigh, high. Dean’s eyes locked onto his. 

 

“Don't choke.” The half grin that ticked up at the corner of Cas’ mouth was more devilish than the angel should have been able to pull off. Cas’ thumb began stroking the seam on the inside of Dean's jeans.

 

“Don't make me then,”Dean said with a smile. He snaked a foot up behind Cas’ leg. “Eat your sandwich.” Dean glanced out toward the war room where Jody was pacing. Cas followed his gaze. “She hasn't told Claire,” he whispered. Sam and the others were talking animatedly and not sparing them any attention.

 

“I know.” Cas leaned in closer. “Seems we’re the only two she’s told.” His eyes followed Jody’s pacing. Dean turned and watched her too. “She’s cleaned her guns several times. She was working with the kids and Bobby and Mary in the gym, but that seems to be at an end.”

 

Dean finished off the sandwich and waited for Cas to do the same. He got up. “Maybe I should keep her company, distract her or something.” 

 

Cas gave him a nod, but he also sent his eyes on a journey that seemed to slowly take in all of Dean. Dean swallowed and came back to him leaning in close. Cas whispered near his ear. “We really do need to do something about your clothes.”

 

Dean stepped back and looked down at himself with a frown. He couldn’t see anything wrong with the outfit. It was just a rock band t-shirt and some faded jeans. He didn’t even have on a stitch of flannel. “You don’t like this?” 

 

Cas beckoned him closer, then closer still. Dean’s ear nearly rested on Cas’ lips. Dean was pretty sure that they were just seconds away from Sam throwing a pan at them or something for being so obviously on the verge of something. Cas’ rough voice breezed over the shell of his ear, quiet in the bustling kitchen but effective enough. “The problem is with the fact that you are constantly clothed. I seek to remedy that.” He leaned back from Dean, that devilish grin was painted on again. “Soon,” Cas added. 

 

Dean dipped in fast and kissed him before heading out to Jody. “I’ll hold you to that,” he called back.

 

Jody stopped pacing when she saw Dean, phone clutched in her hand. “I’m not so good at waiting.”

 

“I can see that,” Dean said. He nodded toward the hall. “Wanna go to the range and shoot some things?”

 

“A world of yes,” Jody breathed out and followed him. They descended the stairs to the deeper bowels of the bunker. There were some overhead fluorescent lights and a long counter like space divided into stations. In the distance there were target papers hanging. Sam had rigged it up so that it was like a modern range now, and you could flip a switch that would bring the target to you. Jody picked a spot and set down her gun in front of her. “Donna texted.”

 

“Figured. What I don’t get is why you haven’t told anyone what’s happening.”

 

“I was gonna. I really was.” She looked at Dean now. “I just got to thinking that if Donna wasn’t right, and if Kaia was still dead, telling would just bring a bunch of hurt to Claire.”

 

“Did Donna say something that made you think she was wrong?”

 

“Not so much. I just think that it’s not worth the risk.” Dean hummed a bit of agreement. “Plus, it doesn’t seem possible.”

 

“Donna’s a professional though. She’d know, right?”

 

Jody picked up the ear muffs and slipped them around her neck, but she didn’t put them over her ears. “She’d know, but…”

 

Dean set a hand on her shoulder. “It’s okay to be worried.”

 

“I’m worried. What if it’s not Kaia, and what if the not Kaia has done something to Donna?” Jody’s head dipped down, and her hands shook at her sides.

 

“Then we’ll fuck up whatever monster lands on our steps.” Dean slipped on his own ear muffs and even pulled them over his ears. Jody followed his lead and did the same. He shot the target in front of his station. All the shots went through the heart of the image. 

 

Jody aimed at her target and unloaded her gun. All of her shots looked like they went through the head. They each turned on the switch that brought the targets to them. Dean pulled aside his ear muff. “Well, shit Jody,” he said.

 

“Yours ain’t half bad.”

 

Her shots not only went through the head of the target but also seemed to go through the first hole made by the first bullet. It was a little wider than the shot would be with just one bullet, but still… “I always thought I was good, but that’s some kind of amazing.” Dean looked back at his own paper and noted that each shot was to the right of the last by a half inch.

 

“Lots of practice.” She pointed at herself with a smile and added, “Sheriff.” 

 

“Yeah, well, you’d think a few decades of monster hunting would amount to more accuracy.”

 

“You’re good Dean.” She smiled and added, “I’m just better.” They both laughed.

 

“So what’d Donna say last time you talked with her?”

 

Jody’s mood fell again. “She said that they’d be late, like maybe tomorrow instead. She said that Kaia has drawn some of the same creatures that were stalking her before back at the boatyard.”

 

“Oh,” Dean said. He set down his gun and leaned into the counter. “Should we meet up with them and offer a hand?”

 

“Donna said no, but I’m not so sure.”

 

“Well, where is she now?”

 

“She wouldn’t say. She knew I’d just drop everything and rush out there. She sounded fine if that’s any consolation, but I’m still worried.”

 

“I’m a little worried now too. Should we tell the others, maybe get some research going on where they are?” Dean made like he was going to head up but stopped when he saw that Jody wasn’t following. 

 

“Dean, I can’t. If it isn’t Kaia, I’m gonna have to take her out. I don’t want Claire to see her.”

 

“She’s tough, Jody. She’ll be okay.” Dean had a hand on her again, thumb stroking comfort into her arm.

 

“You didn’t see her, Dean. If was her first real failure. She was unconsolable for months. Being here helped. I don’t know if she’s ready to go through that again.”

 

“They didn’t know each other that well.”

 

“Doesn’t matter. She felt responsible.” Jody began pacing again.

 

“Hey you two,” Cas said as he descended the stairs. “Just wanted to check on you.” He walked up to Jody and stopped a few feet away. She stepped into his space and they hugged. Dean hadn’t realized that they had bonded before. “I know. Claire has lost so much. It’s like watching her get chipped away at again and again.”

 

“I know,” she said into the crook of his neck. Dean felt bad now that he hadn’t comforted her like she needed. She stepped back and spoke again. “The one thing I always wanted for the girls was to just give them safety. I wanted that for all of them. And here I am not knowing what to do.”

 

“When Donna gets here, Dean and I will help. You don’t have to deal with this alone.” Cas smoothed his hands down her arms. 

 

She smiled at him and said, “I think I’m gonna go help with the kids. It might take my mind off the worrying a little.” She moved past him to the stairs.

 

“It’ll be okay, Jody,” Cas said.

 

“I hope so,” she replied. She looked at Dean, then at the target hanging just past him. “Your boyfriend could use some target practice. He pulls to the right.” She grinned at Dean.

 

“Thought you said my shooting was fine,” Dean said.

 

“I did, but you do pull to the right.” She ascended the stairs and closed the door at the top once she left.

 

Cas walked to the station and looked at Dean’s target. “She’s not wrong.”

 

“Like to see you do better,” Dean said in a huff.

 

Cas replaced the target with a fresh one and sent it off. He loaded Dean’s gun and gave Dean a sideways glance. “This isn’t exactly my weapon of choice. Give me something to throw, and my accuracy is unparalleled.”

 

“I see you’re humble too.” Dean picked up Jody’s ear muffs and passed them to Cas. “Put these on.” Cas complied. Dean put his own on too and stood close to him as he took aim. Cas’ first shot went clean through the center of the head. Dean moved closer to Cas’ back and wrapped his arms around his waist. He tucked his head up onto Cas’ shoulder. Cas took a second shot that went through nearly the same spot as the first. Dean pulled Cas closer as he let his fingers skirt under Cas’ shirt, tracing the ridges of bones and muscles there. Dean swayed a little.

 

Cas’ skin shivered under Dean’s fingers. Dean worked one hand up farther as Cas took a third shot, just as accurate. Dean knew he’d have to double down. His other hand dipped toward the front of Cas’ pants where he proceeded to knead away at what he found there. Cas tipped his head back against him. He reached up and pulled aside his ear muff then Dean’s. “You really don’t want me to outshoot you.” Cas was biting his bottom lip now as Dean’s hand found a nipple to play with.

 

“You gotta be able to deal with distraction, Cas. What if you had to shoot some approaching baddie while monsters were attacking?”

 

“Pretty sure they wouldn’t look like you, and they certainly wouldn’t do that with their hands, tentacles, or whatever.” Dean pressed a kiss into Cas’ neck.

 

“You never know. Gotta be prepared for every eventuality.” Dean rocked his hips into Cas, his own body enjoying the feel of everything.

 

Cas put Dean’s ear muff back into place. He turned back to the target and adjusted his own again too. He lifted the gun and fired off another round and another. Both hit their mark. Dean sucked at the space just below Cas’ ear. He wanted. Cas’ hips rocked into Dean’s hand. Dean popped the button and unzipped his fly. He got his hand on Cas. He kissed into his neck with each stroke. Cas aimed again, and hit the target with his last shot, but it was off just enough to make Dean happy.

 

Cas set down the gun and pulled off the ear muffs. Free of them, Dean could hear, Cas’ ragged breath. Dean pushed him back to the wall, but Cas had other ideas and didn’t stay there. He reached out to Dean and unbuttoned his pants. He sent them to the floor along with the boxer briefs he was wearing. “Fuck Cas.”

 

“That’s the idea,” Cas said as he dropped to his knees and Dean’s hands were left hanging at his sides. Cas got his mouth on him without another word. Dean felt his legs shaking. His back hit the cinderblock wall.  _ This is how I’m going to die. I’m going to die like this, and I don’t fucking care. _ His heart was racing. He got his hands in Cas’ hair and held on. Cas hummed around him as Dean just struggled to keep from sinking to the floor. Everything was gonna come to a close so fast, and he wasn’t ready for that, wasn’t ready to give Cas the tap that said, way to go buddy, back off now.

 

Dean’s words came out shaky as he gave Cas’ hair a little tug. “I’m there, Cas. Fuck.” Cas wouldn’t back off though, and Dean hadn’t really given him much warning. Cas didn’t stop entirely, but he did look up at him with those blue eyes, dark and light all at once. Dean was sure he’d never seen something so beautiful, and that was the end. He felt himself sinking down the wall. Cas popped off and held Dean as he sunk into a heap in his arms. “Guy could get use to this.”

 

“Glad to hear it.” 

 

Dean’s hand snaked up Cas’ thigh to reciprocate, but found that that moment had well and truly passed for Cas. “Wow, you too huh?”

 

“It would seem so,” Cas said as he looked down at the mess there. “Next time you get to be messy.” 

 

“Deal.” Dean smiled into the crook of his neck and then peppered him with kisses there. “Made you miss that last shot a little.” Dean was feeling a bit of pride still at being a distraction to Cas.

 

“Not so much,” Cas said. “Even still, did better than you.”

 

“Best two out of three,” Dean offered. 

  
“You’re on.” Cas ran a hand up Dean’s back. “Later though, with the same distractions.” He kissed Dean on the nose. “You never know what those demons might try with us next time.” And again with the slight raise of his lips and his brow raised high, Dean thought,  _ This, this! How’d I get so damn lucky? _


	11. Red

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The ladies take center stage in this one, with a side of Dean and Cas flirting shamelessly.

Donna was stopped at a red light in some no name town that happened to have a gas station. She didn’t like being this close to civilians given the encounters they’d had so far. She had even reconsidered a direct path to the bunker. It might just be better not to go there at all, especially since there were children there. She glanced at Kaia, who silently stared straight ahead like there was something to see there.

 

She was wearing some sort of old timey cloak. Her long staff topped with a rather sharp blade was leaning between her and the door. Donna had watched her wield it in battle, and knew what a formidable opponent she was. Donna glanced to her left, then her right. Nothing. A whole lot of nothing, and this red light still wasn’t changing. 

 

Donna worried that if they sat there any longer, they’d be facing those creepy things again, the ones they fought at the boatyard. She’d taken a back road to lure them farther away from civilization, but, you could only do that for so long. On one of those roads, they’d managed to get ahead of the old D-Train, and blocked the road.

 

Kaia had spoken one of the few words that she’d said during their acquaintance. “Stop the car.” 

 

So Donna did just that. The fight was quick, and they seemed to work well against them. There were fewer of them on that lone road than there had been back at Jody’s place. That was more of a fight. Donna still felt the ache in her side where a rib was likely a little cracked. Kaia saved her from having it be worse though. She had leapt in front of the creature just as it was about to lunge downward for a killing blow. Kaia used her staff to pierce the creature from throat to crown. A rich red river flowed free from the creatures mouth that had fallen open in a permanent, silent shriek. 

 

Donna drummed at the steering wheel. The light had to be broken. No way a red light on a desolate road needed to stay red this long.  _ Why even have a light out here? There's exactly one business. _ Donna stepped on the gas and ran it.

 

She got maybe half a mile before the red and blue lights flashed in her rearview mirror. “Well, shit.” She glanced at Kaia and the giant weapon at her side. “We gotta put that on the floor and push it back out of sight.” Kaia nodded. “You let me do the talking, ‘kay.” Donna had to laugh at the potential irony of Kaia finally deciding that talking was something she was ready to engage in. They’d driven 400 miles and she’d said maybe twenty total words, most of which were just yes or no in answer to questions concerning hunger or thirst.

 

The crunch of gravel under the car seemed too loud. Donna shut off the engine and leaned over to get her badge and registration, hoping that the sheriff card would be sufficient. It usually was. She could see him approaching in her side mirror, so she began rolling down the window. “Evening, Ma’am,” the officer started. “License and registration.”

 

Donna passed him the badge, license, and registration. “Just hauling a witness to Kansas. Been a little antsy about being stopped for too long at any one place.”

 

The officer looked up at her with his flashlight. He aimed into the car at Kaia, who squinted against it a little. “So, official business huh?” She nodded. His features seemed to lighten up a little and a grin bloomed on his face. He was young, maybe twenty-five if Donna had to guess.  _ Probably fresh out of the academy. _

 

“Does that light ever even change? Seemed like I sat there forever.” Donna put a little charm in her tone.

 

The officer leaned into the car a little. “I’ll let you in on a little secret.” He whispered now, “It’s been red for years. It’s the one thing paying my salary.” He leaned back and passed Donna’s badge, license, and registration back. “Not tonight though.” He smiled again.

 

“Not gonna ticket me then?” Donna asked.

 

“Nah, just seems wrong a little.” He glanced down the dark road back to the town. “Well, more wrong than letting the red light stay red forever.” His brow creased a little. “What the hell.” He took a few steps down the road and said, “What the hell is that?”

 

Donna seemed to know without even seeing them yet, so she got out of the car, grabbing her rifle as she went. “You should get in your car. You don’t need to be dealing with the likes of these things.” She pushed a hand to the officer’s shoulders. “Go on now. Let us handle this.” The creatures were running, The red light behind them gave them a glow that seemed far more terrifying as they bounded on limbs that seemed more animalistic than human. “Kaia!” 

 

The girl was at her side with her weapon. She spoke, “Thirty-five.” Donna looked at her. “We need him to fight too.”

 

The officer hadn’t gotten in his car. He pulled out a gun, and shouted, “Freeze,” like they were going to listen to him. They moved faster.

 

Donna aimed her rifle and took the first shot. An ear piercing shriek filled the night as the first one went down in a heap. “Thirty-four,” she announced. She shouted at the officer, “What’s your name?”

 

He looked at her and said, “Scott.” He looked back at the figures. “What are they?”

 

“Monsters. Shoot them.” Donna aimed and took another shot. That one limped, but kept coming.

 

Kaia said, “Thirty-four and a half.”

 

Donna reloaded. This wasn’t efficient. Scott finally took a shot. He downed one and said, “Thirty-three.”

 

“And a half,” Kaia corrected. 

 

Donna shot again and got another one. The second shot was a miss. She reloaded and took down another. They were close now. She pulled out her gun and unloaded six shots. Scott took out a couple. Kaia was walking toward them now, staff raised. Donna emptied the clip into the crowd of creatures and then exchanged the empty one for a full one. “Scott,” Donna came to his side and passed him a large bowie knife. “Go for the head. It’s softer there than the chest.”

 

She yanked open the back door to her vehicle and pulled out another large knife, just as Kaia was taking out the first to arrive. Scott was still shooting. His aim was a little wild. Donna stalked into the fray and fought for all she was worth. 

 

The creatures didn’t just bleed, they gushed some sort of blue/white goo that stuck to everything. She felt covered in the stuff even after only taking out three of them. Kaia was moving through them with graceful strides. She looked like she hadn’t even been touched. Donna couldn’t focus on that though, as two of the beasts had her down on the ground. She could still hear Scott shooting, so there was hope for him yet.  _ Poor bastard. _ She spared him that thought.

 

Knife through the chest, and that’s where it stuck. She pushed the dead lump into the other one and rolled to her gun that thankfully hadn’t gotten too far from her. She aimed and fired into its face. The splatter was unpleasant. She slammed a foot into the chest of the one, and gave her knife a pull. It came free.

 

She took aim at another, then another, dropping them both. Kaia called out, “Fifteen!” 

 

Scott was stabbing now. Looked like he took out one. Donna moved toward him, taking out another with a swift swinging slice to the throat. She was a bit in the clear, and Scott was about to be ambushed. She reached out and took the rifle up from where she had left it. She aimed at one that was leaping at the officer, taking the thing out in mid-air. The night was full of screams as the creatures were sliced and pierced with bullets. Donna took out another and cast aside the rifle. She slashed at anything that moved.

 

One of the creatures had Scott pinned to the ground, giant mouth open and oozing onto his face as he fought for control. “Shit! Shit! Shit!” he yelled. Then Kaia’s weapon made a home of the creature’s skull, knocking it several feet off of the officer.

 

He was scrambling back up onto his feet when Kaia called out, “Zero!” She marched over to the newly dead creature and slammed her foot into its torso as he yanked the weapon from its head. 

 

Scott was shaking now, knees looking like they’d buckle right under him. Donna went to him and got an arm under his. “Come on now. Let me get you to your car.” She helped him moved with coaxing words.

 

“What was all that?” He was looking at the mess that covered nearly all of his once neat uniform.

 

Donna looked out at the street full of bodies. “Lot of rabid coyotes. They get bad sometimes.” She stood back from him and gave the distant town a worried glare.  _ More could be coming. _ She called out to Kaia, “Help me get them into the ditch there so we can burn ‘em.” 

 

Kaia came to the other side of the car. “We need to keep going.”

 

“Scott, here needs to catch his breath from all the coyote killing we just did. We need to help him out.” Donna leveled her gaze on Kaia, hoping she’d understand. 

 

“Don’t blame me when more come because of the fire.” She started dragging the creatures to the ditch though anyway. Donna started helping, and soon enough it was over. A little, actually a lot, of lighter fluid and a match later, and the ditch was ablaze and smelling like the worst BBQ ever. 

 

Kaia headed for the car. Donna turned back to the police cruiser and Scott. “You head home and wash up. It’ll be better tomorrow.” He just looked up at her, with eyes that seemed to question all of that. “I promise.”

 

“Those ain’t coyotes,” he said.

 

“I know, but that’s what you tell people when you think the truth will be too much.” She set a hand on his shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “You did good tonight. Thanks for that.” She left him and got into her vehicle, closing the door behind her. She watched Scott in the rearview mirror, in the dark for a moment before starting the engine, and rolling back out onto the road.

 

Kansas would be on the horizon come morning.

 

* * *

 

 

While the world outside may have been dark and full of monsters, the world inside the bunker was light and full of laughter. The boys were pleasantly surprised by the birthday party so fresh on the heels of the party that they’d enjoyed with Jack. Cas was sure he’d never seen them smile so much as they did this evening.

 

Samuel was warm against his chest, drooling into his shoulder. Dean was bouncing Ellie on his knee while talking with Jody and Claire. Mary and Bobby had their babies. Sam and Rowena were handing presents over for the boys to open. Soon enough, Dean would be bringing out the cake. Dinner had been a success, and the cake would just about put everyone to bed on the highest of notes. 

 

Cas was looking off at the girls as they cleaned up the last of the candies that had managed to go everywhere, during the great pinata disaster of 2018. Let it be known that on this day, they all learned a valuable lesson about why something like pinata hitting is an outside game. At least when your extra powerful nephilim children beat the ever loving daylights out of the pinata outside, you can safely walk away from the mess for a bit to regroup for the clean-up. You really couldn’t do that in your home. 

 

The kids enjoyed it though. Rebekah’s cheeks were still puffed out with candy. “Last present everyone!” Mary proclaimed. Phobos got his open first, not that there was any mystery as to what was wrapped up. It was a red bike. Deimos had a similar bike. They both looked at them confused. Claire got up and said, “Here, watch this video. Bikes are cool.” She tipped her phone onto its side and showed them something, presumably fun bike adventures. 

 

Castiel decided now was a good time to go settle Samuel into his crib in what was once Castiel’s old room. He and Dean had set up the cribs in there and even had baby monitors for when the kids inevitably woke them up. Castiel rocked back and forth a little before moving the sleeping baby to the crib. He looked down at him with an affectionate smile. Samuel was absolutely getting bigger. It made him proud a little to know that he had something to do with that. Samuel felt safe with them, and eventually he’d let himself grow to childhood and on into his teenage years.

 

He leaned down close and pressed a kiss to the child’s head and said, “I love you little one.” Samuel’s mouth ticked up into a small baby grin and his little fists curled near his mouth. 

 

With that Castiel returned to the party. He leaned into the doorway between the hall and the war room. Ellie was now resting against Dean’s shoulder, likely tired as well. She was fighting it though, with all the fight she’d rightly learned from Dean. Dean’s hand’s stroked her back, and Castiel knew full well the relaxation that such a move provided.

 

Dean was laughing in that melodious way he had when he was really, truly happy. Castiel felt his own smile bloom. He let his eyes dance around the room to the various faces. Falling was easy, especially since he had this to fall to. When he made the decision, a small voice in his head that sounded eerily like Dean kept saying, but you’ll die now. You’ve lived for thousands of years, and now you’ll die. And every time those Dean tones rolled through his mind, he’d silently laugh and think,  _ and why would I want to live forever once you’re gone? _

 

Castiel knew that Dean felt guilt and regret over the decision that was never his to make. He hoped that Dean would one day figure out how to get over it. It seemed possible that he’d be able to do that, given the importance that the man places on family. This room and all the people in it, were his. Castiel felt the warmth of that knowledge coursing through him. This was his home in a way that cold heaven never was. These were his people, his family in a way no angel could ever be. He was loved, and in return he loved in equal if not exceeding measure. It was all he could have ever hoped for and more.

 

Charlie was reaching out for little Ellie, who seemed to be sleeping now. Dean gently slipped her into Charlie’s arms. Charlie stood and rocked the baby back and forth a little. Dean stretched both arms over his head. His shirt rose up a little baring a bit of his hip. Cas licked his lips a little remembering pressing his fingers there as he fell to his knees for Dean. It had been a long time coming, and now he found himself wondering how he could get his hands on Dean far more often.

 

He imagined that this was what addicts felt like. One hit of Dean and he couldn’t stop thinking about that afternoon, the way his head canted to the side as he looked up past his long lashes. Castiel had to close his eyes and drown in the memory. 

 

“Penny for your thoughts,” Dean’s voice pulled him back to the surface. 

 

“You.” Castiel opened his eyes to find Dean standing right in front of him, chest almost pressed to his own. “Always you,” Castiel whispered.

 

“Good, ‘cause you were looking entirely too pleased. Thought I might have to be the jealous type.” Dean smiled and kissed the edge of his lips. He nodded back toward Charlie and said, “So, Charlie volunteered to take on baby duty tonight. Said she’d let us get a full eight hours of sleep, uninterrupted if we wanted it.”

 

Castiel looked at him, mouth a little open. His tongue darted out. “I don’t know if I’m even capable of sleeping through a whole night anymore.”

 

Dean leaned in close again and said, “Well, that’s good ‘cause Charlie would be disappointed if we slept the whole night.” Dean moved back and waggled his eyebrows.

 

Castiel pushed down a laugh. Instead he stretched out, long and lean toward the ceiling. His shirt rode up a little, and Dean’s eyes swooped down to the skin there. There was heat in the gaze. Then Castiel let out a fake yawn that became real. Dean’s hand raked over Castiel’s side under his shirt where the skin was showing. “I don’t know Dean. I thought that couples have long periods of rest between romantic interactions.” Cas kept a straight face as he continued, “So we met ten years ago. We romanced each other subtly for six of those years. Then there was today’s physical activities. By my reckoning, we should be due for the next step around say July 17th 2022. Of course, we should bump up the date to July 4th, because fireworks.”

 

Dean leaned in close to his ear and whispered, “Rudest little angel in the garrison.”

 

“I’m not little, and I’m sure you remember far worse from the angel pool than me.”

 

Dean laughed and said, “You’re giving them a run for their money.”

 

“You’re the one that came up with this infernal timeline. Who am I to try to speed things up by pressing you down into the mattress prematurely.”

 

Dean was tracing the edges of Castiel’s ribs. It tickled a little and made him squirm. “I think the boys were happy with the party.” Dean cast a glance back over at them trying to ride the bikes indoors. “Maybe we should save those presents for outside tomorrow,” Dean called out.

 

“We might be convinced if you brought out the cake,” Claire responded. 

 

Dean let go of Cas and said, “Duty calls.” Then he gave Cas a quick swat on his ass. 

 

“Now who’s rude,” Cas said.

 

“You love it.” 

 

* * *

 

 

Rowena sat bolt upright in bed. Sam didn’t move. He must have been exhausted. The party was a lot so close on the heels of the last one. She pressed her hands to her stomach. The contraction was sharp. It could just be a false alarm though. She looked down at Sam and thought about waking him. He looked so peaceful. It had taken less convincing to get him into the bed this time. She reached out to him and raked her long fingers through his hair. 

 

She wondered if this was what love felt like. She’d felt much in her time. She’d even say that there were times that she thought her feelings had been love. Rowena was questioning all that now. Things were different. Losing her son had changed her. There was a deep bit of self-preservation embedded in all of her choices before. It was hard to sift past that to the emotions that were wound up in her at those times.

 

Now, though, with Sam breathing out softly next to her, she wondered what this was. Certainly, there was affection. Attraction too. He was quite the specimen. She let her eyes run down the lines and planes of his body. He was worth careful, religious scrutiny. She let her fingers run down his temple to his neck then to his chest just over his heart. She sucked in a breath and held it as another spasm seemed to twist her abdomen. 

 

She moved her hand to her stomach and rubbed the muscles there. “Sweety, mommy’s trying to sort some things out. Be patient,” she whispered, head tipped to her stomach. Truth be told she’d managed to slow things up for so long that she was beginning to think that she’d be able to do it forever. Her gestation had been longer than the typical nine months. She’d even explained the spell to Sam and Dean, only to get encouragement and a ‘keep doing that’ from Sam. Nothing lasts forever though.

 

Sam stirred a little. “Ena..” he mumbled. “Don’t die.”

 

She stifled a little laugh. His brows were all scrunched up like he was truly worried. She eased back down into the crook of his arm and laid an arm over his midsection. “I’ve no intention of dying,” she whispered again. “We’ve got plans, you and me.” She kissed into his body where he was closest. “I might even want to have some words with you about…” She felt her muscles tighten again with another sharp contraction. She breathed out raggedly and said, “feelings,” like the one word was ripped from her. 

 

Sam sat up too fast. She was jostled off to the side. “You’re in labor!”

 

“Maybe.”

 

“How long? Why didn’t you wake me up?” Sam was out of the bed and pacing. Then he swooped down and grabbed his laptop off the floor. “How long, Rowena?”

 

“The contractions are close.” She watched him as he seemed to dive headlong into a full panic. She sat up, gripping her stomach as she did so. “My water hasn’t broken yet. We’ve got time.”

 

“Dean,” Sam was standing now. He nearly dropped his laptop. “I need to get Dean and Cas.” He started to move for the door, when Rowena snagged his arm, stopping him. “Rowena.”

 

“No.” She forced a smile. “Not just yet. Can we just have a few minutes of this, just us, before the whole lot of them descends on this room?” Sam looks like he’ll argue and rush off anyways. “Please, Samuel.”

 

He comes to the bed and sits down at her side. “I’m freaking out.”

 

“I know. And they won’t make that any better.” She took his hand in hers and threaded their fingers together. “Been trying to think of a good name for this child. Haven’t found the right one yet. Kept saying, Rowena Macleod, you’ve got plenty of time for all of that.” She smiled. 

 

“You think it’s a girl or a boy?” Sam scooted closer to her. 

 

“Not sure. I don’t know that I’m concerned about that either.”

 

“What names have you considered?” Sam’s thumb was rubbing back and forth over Rowena’s hand. 

 

“Considered Deanna just to mess with your brother, if it’s a girl.”

 

“That was our grandma’s name,” Sam said.

 

“Oh, then I’m definitely leaning toward that name now.” She lifted his hand and kissed it. “I also liked Charlie’s old name, Celeste.”

 

“It’s a good name.”

 

“I’ve avoided considering boy names. I keep circling around names that are too connected to Fergus.”

 

This time Sam picked up her hand and kissed her fingers. “Well, we don’t have to decide anything right away.” He sucked in a breath. “Does it feel any different from the last time you went through this?”

 

She laughed, then moved both of her hands to her belly. The contraction was a little stronger. “This will be entirely different. I was alone then.” She was trying to regulate her breathing. “I’m far from alone now.”

 

Sam was rubbing her back. “What can I do?”

 

“I think we should get them now.” Sam was standing in front of her again. She reached up and cupped his face, bringing him down to her. “I know that now is not the time, but…”

 

“I’m listening,” Sam said as the contraction stopped her.

 

“This hurts.” She was breathing in hisses, stops, and starts. “Next time you will use a condom.”

 

Sam stood and took two steps to the door. “So there’ll be a next time?”

 

“And a time after that. Now shut up and get me some midwives.” Rowena slipped back onto the bed and stared at the ceiling.  _ You can do this. Just breathe. _

 

* * *

 

 

“We’re almost there,” Donna said as she turned onto the final road that would run right up to the bunker. She waited for Kaia to respond, but Kaia said nothing. “So, will you be explaining any of this once we get there?” Donna waved her hands around a little, signifying everything.

 

Kaia took a breath and said, “Some things can’t be explained yet.”

 

Donna stopped the car and just stared at her. “That’s a whole sentence there.”

 

Kaia added, “I’m not allowed to say more.”

 

Donna reached out and set a hand on Kaia’s arm. Kaia just looked down at that spot like she didn’t know what to make of the contact. “I want to help you. They’ll want to help too, but we need to know what we’re up against.”

 

“Like I said, I’m not allowed to say more.”

 

“Not allowed? By who?” Donna let her hand fall down to the seat between them. 

 

“We should continue.” She closed her eyes and added, “She’s in labor.”

 

“Who? What are you talking about?” Donna shifted back into drive and let the car roll slowly.

 

“The witch.”

 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. What whitch? Are you having some sort of psychic moment or something?” And Donna really wasn’t sure what to make of any of this.

 

“Hopefully she lives, because a witch could come in handy.” Kaia waved at the road in front of her. “You should really drive faster than this.”

 

Donna stepped on the pedal a little and closed the distance to the bunker. Kaia fell back into silence. They got out of the car in front of the main doorway. Donna didn’t have a key, but she figured that someone would let her in if she just texted or called Jody. 

 

**Donna:** We’re here.

A few moments passed then Jody responded.

**Jody:** Sending someone to let you in

 

A few more moments passed, then a small boy with a halo of white hair stood in the slightly opened doorway. “Hello,” the boy said.

 

“Well, hello there yourself.” Donna came down low to talk to him. “I’m afraid that we haven’t met yet. I’m Donna.” She stuck out her hand to him to shake. He looked from her face to her hand and back. Donna eventually let her hand fall. “And what’s your name.”

 

“I’m Phobos.” He pulled the door open all the way. “Everyone is getting ready for the baby.”

 

Kaia asked, “The witch is having her baby now?”

 

“Yes.” Phobos closed the door behind them once they were fully inside. “She has been yelling a lot. Sam is worried.”

 

There was a high pitched scream that rolled through the bunker. “That’s a lot,” Donna said. They made their way down the stairs toward the screams, because apparently that’s just the way that she rolled now.

 

Then there was Dean making his way through the main room toward the kitchen. “Donna, you made it.” Dean cast a quick glance at Kaia too. “And you’re less dead than I remember you being.” 

 

Kaia stepped up to him and said, “You and Sam will assist me.”

 

Dean blanched a little. “Uh, maybe. We’re a little busy at the moment.”

 

“Save the witch. She’s important.”

 

“We’re doing what we can.” Dean stated moving back to the kitchen. “I’m just going to take care of these towels. You two can head down the hall. Jody will want to see you.” Dean directed all of this to Donna. “Oh, and Claire doesn’t know about this yet.” Dean waved a hand at Kaia. “Be careful okay.”

 

Donna nodded. Kaia said, “She thinks I’m still dead.” She actually looked a little saddened by this news. “I hope that she views this as a better outcome.”

 

Dean said, “She will, but the first moment is gonna shock the hell out of her. Just be careful.”

 

“We will, Dean,” Donna said, not knowing what form this carefulness would take. After all, it’s not like there’s a careful way to show someone a now living person that they had watched die. Still, it had to be done. Donna focused on just breathing and walking. Together they made their way to the hall, toward the noise of Rowena’s labor.


	12. Labor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that this recent update took so long to post. I got way busy with real life. It might be a week or two for the next chapter too, just so you know. Hope all is well in your world.

“Sam, you have to kill me,” Rowena said after she cleared the room. Thankfully no one had to hear this, Sam thought. She might just have enough power in her to get them to do it.  Everyone was all too willing to do her bidding, everyone except for him.

 

He sat down on the bed next to her. He held her hand that was gripping the sheets. Her face contorted in pain as another contraction came to her. “I know it hurts. I'm so sorry. It'll be over soon though.”

 

“It won't. I made a mistake.” She was doing some sort of Lamaze breathing now, then spoke again, “I made a terrible mistake.”

 

“Yes, I know. Condoms next time, promise.” Sam was really trying to keep the mood light. It had been two days of agony. He didn't know what to do. He had half the bunker on research duty and Cas and Dean at his beck and call for everything else. No one was sleeping beyond a stolen moment between the agony of her contractions.

 

Rowena was working through the pain now with the breathing Cas had taught her. He went on for a little too long about taking an online course for doulas. “It's going to last for months.”

 

“No birth has ever gone on that long,” Sam said as he plastered on a smile for good measure.

 

Rowena gritted her teeth and said, “No, Samuel! Listen to me, just listen!” Tears were streaming now. This contraction must be bad. “I made a mistake. I cast a spell to give us more time. I don’t know why it took me so long to figure it out, but it’s bad, so bad.”

 

“Breathe, breathe,” Sam encouraged. “Let's get through this contraction, then you can finish explaining.”

 

She did focus on the breathing for a few minutes, then said, “I did the spell to prolong gestation. It's going to prolong this birth too.”

 

Sam brushed back her hair. “Oh, Rowena,” he whispered. “Tell me what to do. We can break the spell, right?”

 

She just shook her head.

 

“How long will it last,” Sam asked.

 

“I don't know. Too long.” She squeezed his hand. “Samuel, please.” She was breathing through the pain. “I need you to do something for me.”

 

“Anything.”

 

“I need you to break the spell. I need you to kill me.” She squeezed his hand so hard that Sam thought he might end up with some broken fingers. “It’s already too much. I tried a spell with the girls. I guided them through it. It should have worked. It should have taken the pain.” She closed her eyes and bit her bottom lip. “Oh, god.”

 

“Breathe with me.” Sam did the breathing that Cas showed them. Rowena tried to do the same. When the contraction passed the pain, at last, lessened, he said, “Maybe we need to try something else. Let me get them on a different path.” Sam turned to the door and called out, “Cas!”

 

As if he’d been hovering in the hall, Cas immediately appeared. “Sam.” Cas came into the room and fell right into breathing with Rowena. 

 

“We need to get everybody on a different research path. Rowena’s spell to prolong gestation is what is also prolonging this birth.” Sam looked down at her then back to Cas adding, “and the pain.”

 

“I’ll stay with her. You go explain it to the others.” Cas took her hand and held it. Together they breathed in the same pattern. Sam came back to Rowena’s side and bent down. He kissed her gently on the forehead then left the room. 

 

He found Dean in the war room with Ellie on his knee. She’d grown a bit more and was holding herself upright. Dean was focused on his screen, then he looked up. “Heya Sammy. How’s Rowena?”

 

Sam nearly fell into the chair at Dean’s side. “She asked me to kill her, so there’s that.”

 

Dean closed his laptop. “Oh.” He hugged Ellie to him. “What can I do to help?”

 

“We need to research pain management or how to break the spell she cast.” Sam explained the issue with the gestation spell, then got up to pace the room. “I can’t watch her suffer like this for much longer.”

 

“Well, we can take turns. It doesn’t have to be all you, man.” Dean got up and pulled him into a half hug. “Seems like everyone is dealing with some form of misery or another.”

 

“Claire okay?”

 

“She’s getting there.”

 

“And Kaia?” Sam asked.

 

“She’s getting there too.”

 

“What if we bring in another witch, someone that knows how to handle spells like this?” Dean seemed to be thinking out loud.

 

“It’s Rowena we’re talking about. She doesn’t have friends in the witch community, not to mention the fact that any witch powerful enough to undo Rowena’s spell work might also be a witch that would want a nephilim baby just for the power of it.” Rowena cried out in anguish. Sam looked like he was crumbling. He punched the top of the table.

 

Ellie looked startled in Dean’s arms. A moment later and she started wailing. Dean started bouncing her a little on his hip. “It’s okay sweetie. Uncle Sam got the big mean table, showed it who was boss.” Dean turned to Sam and said, “I’ll be right back. Just gonna hand her off.” 

 

“I’m sorry,” Sam said. Dean just waved him off and headed away, down the hall. He came back a moment later, empty handed. “I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean to frighten her.”

 

Dean pulled Sam into another hug. “You’re allowed to be upset. Now stop making me hug you.” Dean let him go and sat at the table.

 

“Who did you hand off Ellie to?”

 

“Claire. Figured she needed the distraction. Looked like my timing was good too. She was in an intense stare off with Kaia.”

 

“Uh, should you be introducing a baby into that mix?” Sam glanced off toward the hallway.

 

“Can’t hurt.” Dean drummed at the table. “So what other options are there? Can we bring in a doctor and get Rowena a C-section?”

 

“I’m not sure how that would work. It might be the best idea I’ve heard yet.”

 

Dean shrugged. “Well, the witch idea isn’t so bad either if we found a good one.” 

 

They both stared at each other a moment then both of them said together, “Max.”

 

Sam pulled out his phone and seemed to be checking his contacts. Dean waited. Sam moved the phone to his ear. “It’s ringing.” Rowena cried out again. “Hey Max, this is Sam. We could really use your help with a spell. Hoping you can come to the bunker. Give me a call back when you get this. Thanks.”

 

“Voicemail, huh?”

 

“Yeah, here’s to hoping.”

 

“Yeah, here’s to hoping.”

 

* * *

 

 

When Claire saw Kaia, it was more than shock. She’d been in the room with Sam and Jody as they tried to help alleviate Rowena’s pain. She’d been distracted and hadn’t noticed Donna in the doorway right away. Donna had smiled, wide and bright, until Rowena cried out. They all turned to her, wishing that they could help in some real way.

 

When Claire turned back to the door, Donna was not alone. Everything that she’d been holding fell to the floor. “What the fuck?” She had a knife on her that she slid out and held at the ready.

 

“It’s okay, Claire,” Donna started as she backed into the hall, pushing Kaia behind her.

 

“Hello Claire,” Kaia whispered past Donna’s shoulder. 

 

Claire followed them out into the hall. Rowena cried out again, and the door was closed between them, as if it was normal to shut out a knife wielding woman, a sheriff, and a maybe zombie. “What the fuck, Donna?”

 

“I’m sorry. I should have warned you. It must be a shock. Well, obviously it’s a shock.” Donna reached back and set a hand on Kaia’s shoulder. “She’s really Kaia. She’s not a monster or anything like that. I checked. There’s a lot of story to be sure, but she’s been unable to explain herself.”

 

“Then you haven't checked.” Claire's hand was steady as she pointed the upraised knife toward Kaia. “What are you?”

 

Kaia blinked. “It is good to see you again. I looked for you as soon as it seemed safe enough, but by then you were gone.”

 

“That's not an answer.” Claire gritted her teeth and repeated, “What are you?”

 

Kaia shot a glance at Donna and said, “You have to help me explain. I think you understand. I think you can say the things I can't.”

 

Donna nodded. She reached back and set a comforting hand on Kaia's shoulder. “Kaia is under a compulsion. From what Jody told me about the other children here, it's the same for them.”

 

Claire interrupted, “What are you saying? What does this have to do with Kaia being dead?”

 

“You can't kill a nephilim by simply stabbing them. We know that from Jack.” Donna gave Kaia's shoulder a squeeze. “I don't understand it all myself, but I think she's a nephilim.”

 

Claire hand shook just a little, but she didn't let it drop. “What happened to the creature that tried to kill you then?” She directed the question at Kaia. Doubt was still heavy in her voice.

 

“She is me,” Kaia said. She looked away. Her pinched brow gave a hint at the struggle she was having with words.

 

“Tell us a story. When Rebekah told us a story about a little girl that was hunted for being a nephilim, the spell didn't restrain her.” Claire swallowed and added, “Not that I'm believing one bit of this.”

 

When Kaia spoke it was quiet, a barely there whisper of words that didn't fit with the fighter she'd had to be for so long. Her mess of brown hair fell in front of her face, obscuring her eyes just a little. 

 

“Long ago, there was a little girl who had no parents.” Kaia paused and licked her lips before continuing. “They said her mother died in some tragic way. They never said it was while giving birth.” Claire lowered her arm a little. “They said her father died with her. They said there was an explosion, and there was no way they could have lived.”

 

“How did they explain the baby?” Claire asked.

 

“Shielded by the bodies of her parents.”

 

“Oh god,” Donna breathed out. She rested her hand on Kaia’s arm in a comforting move.

 

“It's not true though. At least not in the way they explained it.” She looked up and her hair slipped back. “He tried to protect them both, but something went wrong. He had to take his child away, do something desperate.”

 

“Something desperate?” Claire asked. 

 

“Yes,” Kaia said as she looked steadily at Claire. “It was a King Solomon’s spell.” She looked past Claire to the empty hall, like she could see the story forming, so very real, behind them. “He was being pursued by angels, intent on making him play his part in an apocalypse that wasn’t even started yet. If they knew that the girl existed, they’d use her to make him comply. He wouldn’t let them do that.”

 

“What’s a King Solomon’s spell?” Claire asked.

 

“Where there was one, there’d be two. In this way, if they got hold of her, they might not know what she was.” Kaia suddenly looked smaller somehow, worry lined her brow. “One was more angel than human, perhaps too much angel. She went to the Bad Place, a place full of creatures that would hunt her. She was strong though, and she made a friend, a giant that came to rely on her for food and companionship. She needed to be stronger, and this place would make her stronger.”

 

“A giant?” Donna asked.

 

“Yes, he was taller than the redwoods on your coast. He was a capable fighter, but not much for sneaking up on his prey. She was a far better hunter.”

 

Claire interrupted, “And what happened to the other girl, the other half?”

 

“She was human enough to pass, to go unnoticed. So her father took her to her mother’s home, and let her be found. He told the other girl, the one in the Bad Place, that one day they’d come back together, and that then, they would need to seek out a pair of hunters. He said, ‘Find Sam and Dean Winchester. They’ll help you.” She locked eyes with Claire. “She didn’t know you. She just did what she had to to survive.”

 

Claire remembered the spear and Kaia shoving her aside. “You saved me from yourself.” Kaia couldn’t answer. Claire took a step toward her. “How did the girl live once she died?”

 

“Killing one ends the spell. Their bodies merge together again. And once that occured, she came back to this world. She was hunted here, might still be hunted, but she’d done what she was told.”

 

“Kaia,” Claire said as she took a step closer. “I don’t know how to feel right now.” She swallowed. “I mourned you.”

 

“I sought you out, even before following my orders. I had to find you. My timing was always bad though.”

 

Donna pulled Claire into a hug. “I’m gonna go in and talk to Jody. You think you could keep from killing Kaia?”

 

“I’d like to see her try,” Kaia said.

 

Claire rolled her eyes. “I’m not going there.” She looked at Kaia and added, “I’d be quite capable though, given the opportunity.”

 

Donna took that as her cue to move past them. “Get her set up in a room.”

 

* * *

 

 

Max was on the west coast with his sister, sitting at a bar in La Jolla when Sam called. He looked at the screen and let it go to voicemail. He had his worries. He hadn’t seen either of the Winchesters since he’d made his decisions. He couldn’t go back now, and he certainly couldn’t let them meddle. And they’d meddle. They were Winchesters after all. 

 

Alicia came back to the bar and slid into the space next to him. She drummed at the counter then popped up onto the bar stool. Her dress was skin tight and deep red. “You gonna dance too?”

 

“Nah, I’m just gonna finish this up and then head back to the room.” Max whirled his glass around a  little.

 

“I scoped out a hottie for ya.” Max glanced over his shoulder back at the dance floor to where Alicia was looking. There was in fact a ‘hottie’ leaning against the old jukebox, but Max wasn’t in the mood. He turned back to the dregs of his drink. “Really, thought he’d be perfect for ya.”

 

“Definitely my type, but I’m just not feeling it.” The notification light on his phone was flashing. He moved his hand to flip the phone over so he wouldn’t have to see it.

 

Alicia saw it though and intercepted it. ‘Who got you bothered?” She unlocked the phone and said, “Oh, Sam Winchester.” She set the phone back down. “Why didn’t you take the call?”

 

“The Winchesters are trouble.” He sighed adding, “And bad memories.”

 

Alicia dropped a hand onto his arm and leaned in close. She pressed a kiss to his cheek. “They tried to save her. We can’t fault them for things not working out.”

 

Max looked at her, as he worked her words over in his mind. He wondered if this was just her speaking, or if it was her picking up on something from him to spew back. Most days he didn’t question it all, others he felt the weight of his decision. The ring sat heavy on his hand, reminding him of the full price he’d pay one day for his choices. She squeezed his arm and looked a little worried. “I’m okay.”

 

“You don’t seem okay.”

 

“Nothing with them is ever easy. I’m thinking we just avoid it, pick up a case out here instead.”

 

Alicia waved the bartender over. “I’ll take a beer, an 805.” The bartender uncapped a black labeled bottle and slid it over to her. “It’s been awhile now. I think we should at least hear what they want. Hunting community is too small to cut off everyone.”

 

Max pressed his palms into his eyes and leaned over the bar. Everything was too much. They’d take one look at Alicia and decide she was a monster, something to be killed. He couldn’t let them do that, but he also couldn’t ignore them, he reckoned. The phone lit up again, this time from Dean.  _ We know and we dont care. Just help us. _

 

Max picked up the phone and read the message again.  _ How could they know? _ “I’m gonna call them. I’ll be back in a bit. Just finish up your beer.” 

 

Alicia gave him a little salute as he moved away from her to the front door. He stepped out into the cool air. It was dark out, but there was a healthy glow of light from the moon bouncing off the ocean. The roll of the waves on the shore filled the air with something calming, and he needed that right now. He stared at the phone. _ This could be a trap. _ It didn’t feel like one though. He believed that the Winchesters were at the least, honorable. 

 

He chose to call Dean instead of Sam. “Max,” Dean’s voice sounded rough and a little quiet. 

 

“Sorry, did I wake you?”

 

“I just texted you, so no. I didn’t think you’d call Sam back. Wanted you to know that we needed you and that we aren’t in any place to judge you.” Dean didn’t explain more and Max wondered if he really knew.

 

“Not sure what you’re referring to,” Max went for playing dumb, and it was something that usually failed, so he wasn’t shocked by Dean’s response.

 

“Don’t be an idiot. We really don’t have time for that. We need you to come to the bunker. You can bring your sister or not. Whatever makes you feel safe.”

 

“Alicia is dead.” It felt wrong saying it, but it wasn’t a lie.

 

“Yeah, well, I’ve seen a lot of things. Watched my brother die, my mother too. The dead don’t always stay dead, and I’m not one to judge how one resolves their issues with death. You got your sister back the only way you could, and you are gonna pay big time for that. I’ve done worse for the same. I understand. Now will you come here or not?”

 

Max let himself breathe. No one else knew. He’d just let all their old contacts think things were fine. He had to know that word would get back to Sam and Dean at some point. “What’s the issue?”

 

“It’s a long story.” 

 

“I’ve got time. Spill.” And Dean told him everything, from nephilim babies to spells gone awry. He knew he had to help. When he hung up, Alicia was already outside with him, leaning up against their car. “We’re heading to Kansas.” Max rounded the car and got in. Alicia followed.

 

“Figured.”

 

“We’ll need to stop on the way to pick up some supplies. We’re gonna be doing some spell work.”

 

“Oh, they need our witchy ways this time, huh?” Alicia said.

 

“Looks like.” Max looked to Alicia as he pulled out onto the road. She was smiling, seemingly happy with the break from their routine. He couldn’t fully shake the worry, but he was damn sure gonna try. Besides, they had a lot of miles to cover, and that would take time, time he could spend working out those worries.

 

* * *

 

 

Dean hung up the phone and set it on the nightstand. He’d tried to keep his voice low, so that he wouldn’t disturb Cas, but he knew that Cas was wide awake. “Sorry. I should have taken it into the other room.”

 

Cas rolled onto his side and laid a hand over Dean’s middle. “Then I wouldn’t have caught half of the story. He’s coming here then?”

 

“Yeah, he should be here in a couple of days. He knows we’re desperate.” Dean rolled onto his side and faced Cas. “I’m worried he won’t be able to fix this. Rowena hasn’t seen a solution yet that doesn’t involve killing her, and she’s way more powerful than Max.”

 

“Our choices are limited.” Castiel moved closer, pressing his body tight to Dean’s. “This is the best we can do right now. Alex gave her a muscle relaxer shot today, and it seemed to help a bit.” Castiel nuzzled into Dean’s neck. “She and Jody also went out and bought some new clothes for Ellie and Samuel today.”

 

“Yeah, saw that.” Dean kissed the top of Castiel’s head. “They’re growing.”

 

“They know that our attentions are divided. They wanted to help.”

 

“You can still see what they’re thinking?” Dean asked.

 

“No, I mean, not in the way I did before. You spend a lot of time with someone, and you learn to read them though.” Cas let his hand slide down Dean’s side, then between them to cup Dean through his sweats. 

 

“You getting a good read there?” Dean had been tired before, but that was drastically changing. 

 

“Come ‘ere.” Cas pulled Dean on top of him. “Like this.” He started pushing Dean’s sweatpants down, but it was difficult now with Dean pressed on top of him. Dean rolled his hips a bit. “Yes, like that.”

 

Dean’s lips found his and claimed them. Dean’s hands roamed down to Cas’ boxers and yanked them aside so he could reach in between them. Cas was hard. “Thought you were tired,” Dean breathed out between kisses.

 

“I was. Will be again. Oh yes, like that. Just like that.” Dean had lined himself up alongside Cas’ length. He was thrusting against him. The friction could be made better with some lube, but Cas was whimpering and clinging to his back now, and Dean wasn’t going away from this even if it was just to reach into his nightstand. Cas was thrusting up too, and Dean was meeting each move. He sucked at the space under Cas’ ear and dragged his teeth along his neck down to his shoulder. They were making a mess between them, but he wanted more. Dean sucked on the juncture between Cas’ neck and shoulder. 

 

“I want you. I always want you,” Dean spoke near Cas’ ear. And Cas was panting into each thrust. 

 

“Always want this. I want to be near you, in you, on you, always close.” Castiel’s moves were growing erratic, and Dean was already coming. Something in Cas’ voice, in the promise of more to come sent him over the edge. Cas followed with his own orgasm and seemed to sink into the mattress just a bit more. He was breathing deep and fast. Dean leaned down and kissed him again.

 

“You know I love you right?” He’d said it a few times now, but he needed Cas to really hear it.

 

Cas looked at him. “If you really love me, you’ll roll to my side.” 

 

Dean laughed. “Thought you wanted all this nearness.”

 

“I do, but I’m human now, and I need to breathe.” Dean rolled to the side and stroked Cas’ hair back from his face. 

 

“Sorry about taking your breath away there.” Dean laughed again and pressed his forehead to Cas’ shoulder. 

 

Now Cas ran his fingers through Dean’s hair. “I love you too. Always have.”

 

“Yeah,” Dean asked as he leaned back a little to look at him.

 

“Yeah,” Cas answered, and pulled him back so he could kiss him lightly until they both were ready to sleep.


	13. Healing

Her screams had died away into the defeated wimpers that now filled the room at all times. Rowena wasn’t alone though. Sam leaned down to her and kissed her on her forehead. “Ready?” he asked her as he stood back up. 

 

She nodded and closed her eyes. Jody, Claire, Donna, and Charlie moved around the bed, around Rowena. They’d found a spell, and since Max was still a day out, they decided that the risk was worth it. Rowena’s pain was great. They each stood around Rowena forming the points of a pentacle. Sam began the incantation and the others repeated him. The candles that each of them held flared up a little then sputtered out. 

 

The room was cast into darkness as Sam finished the incantation.  And all at once, they all fell to the floor. A type of sleep descended upon everyone in the room, and Rowena’s pain seemed to have fallen away as her eyes closed.

 

* * *

 

 

Dean waited outside Sam’s room with Cas, Mary, Bobby, and Jack. “Sounds like it worked,” Dean said when he heard the bodies fall.

 

“Jack, can you get a sense of things in there?” Mary asked.

Jack lifted a hand and seemed to concentrate all of his energy on the door. “They’re okay,” he said.

 

“Okay, you all can come out now,” Dean called back over his shoulder. Kaia had Brie and Zeke while Patience held Samuel and Ellie on each hip. The rest of the children stood behind them with Alex. Jack walked over and took one of the babies, Samuel, from Patience. Mary and Bobby scooped up Brie and Zeke both.

 

Cas pushed open the door and turned on the lights. He walked over to Sam and knelt down at his side. Sam was breathing softly past slightly pooched lips. Next, Cas moved to Claire’s side and brushed back her hair. His thumb made a gentle move over her cheek. “The spell seems to have worked well.” He stood and checked Rowena. There was a peacefulness on her face. Her brow wasn’t pinched, and she wasn’t crying out. She was still covered in a fine sheen of sweat. Castiel picked up a nearby rag and wiped it across her forehead. 

 

Mary was crouched down by Jody’s side. Bobby was there too. He said, “She looks happier than she has the whole time she’s been here.”

 

Mary cast a sideways glance his way. “She’s been stoic.”

 

“About what,” Bobby’s graveled out drawl seemed to make the question harsh. Mary raised a brow at him. “I just mean, she’s been giving us the look every time we’re in the room with her.”

 

Dean sat on the edge of the bed near them, and chose not to help. Mary said, “I talked with Dean about it.” She glanced over her shoulder at him, like she’d let him take over any time. He didn’t offer any help. “Seems the other Bobby, their Bobby, had a thing with Jody here.” Mary nodded down at Jody’s still, peaceful form.

 

“Oh,” Bobby began, then, “Oh.”

 

“Yeah, it was a long time ago, but you can imagine that seeing us is not really...well,” Mary just let the sentence peter off.

 

Dean chose to help out now. “It’s not like she’s hung up on you Bobby. She’s moved on. It’s just weird is all. Maybe cut her a break.”

 

Bobby got up and rubbed his hands on his pants. “Sorry. Didn’t have a clue.” He moved to Donna and checked her. She had a grin plastered to her face all big and toothy. “Ain’t she a happy one?”

 

“Yeah. Not much gets Donna down.” Dean came over smiled down at her. “Here’s to hoping that the wake up spell is easy. Magic fixes make me nervous.” 

 

“You and me both,” Mary said as she came to his side. She repeated, “You and me both.”

 

* * *

 

 

They took turns watching over the sleepers during the day. When night came, Kaia would take  over. She said that she didn’t need to sleep. Dean for his part sat in the room with Jack, wishing he could do more than just wait. Dean still felt a little uneasy around Kaia, and maybe the fact that he had too much time to think made him worry a little more. He gave voice to the worry, but Jack assured him that Kaia had good intentions in her. “So you can see that now?” Dean asked.

 

Jack looked at him with a tip of the head. “Of course I can. My Grace is now at full capacity with the help Cas gave me.” 

 

“What do you see in Rowena? Can you see the baby?” Dean could hear the others putting food out on the table for dinner. Everything in the front half of the bunker felt warm, like home. Dean wanted to save it.

 

Jack set a hand on his shoulder, like Dean was a child in need of comfort. “I was afraid of what I’d see so I didn’t look.” He swallowed and continued, “When Cas looked at me, while my mom was still pregnant, he saw a paradise earth. It’s what I wanted. It’s what my mom would tell me. She believed that the world could be so beautiful. I wanted her to be right. When Cas looked at me then, all he saw was the picture that I painted for him from my mom’s words.”

 

“But if you know that, then we can look at this baby and not assume.” 

 

“What good would that do?” Jack asked.

 

“Well, for starters, maybe we could see if the kid is Sam’s or Gabe’s. That might help.”

 

With that, Jack and Dean stood and peered down at Rowena. While they stood there, Kaia came to the room. “Dinner’s ready.”

 

“Yeah, we’ll be there in a second,” Dean said. He glanced back at Kaia. She didn’t go. “Come in and close the door.” She complied.

 

“Jack and I just had an idea,” Dean said. He nodded down to Rowena. “So do your thing,” he said to Jack.

 

“What thing is he going to do?” Kaia asked as Jack reached out and set a hand on Rowena’s head.

 

“He’s going to see if the baby is Sam’s or Gabe’s.” 

 

“Why does that matter?” Kaia leaned in and looked closely at Rowena.

 

“If it’s Sam’s then we don’t have to worry about the birth killing Rowena,” Jack said as he concentrated, the little wrinkles in his brow coming together.

 

“Oh, I guess that’s important.” Kaia sat back down. “If I’d have known, I’d have checked for you.” She tipped her head and seemed to think about it for a second then added, “Actually not sure if I’d be able to tell you though. I mean, I apparently come with limits.”

 

“You getting anything?” Dean asked.

 

“It doesn’t make sense,” Jack let his hand drop as he said it. “That doesn’t make sense.”

 

Kaia got back up and came to his side. “What did you see?”

 

“You have to look. It doesn’t make sense.” Jack took a step back. “Can they both be…”

 

Kaia set  a hand on Rowena’s arm and stared down at her large abdomen. “Odd.” She let her own hand fall. “You are right. That does not make sense.”

 

“In the dark over here,” Dean interrupted.

 

They both turned to Dean and then back to each other. Kaia ended up explaining. “Hypothetically, it appears as if this child is connected to both Sam and Gabriel.”

 

“Can a baby have two fathers?” Jack mused out loud.

 

“Not the last time I checked. Basic biology buddy.” They all walked back to the kitchen and the others, somehow deciding that they didn’t need to leave someone in there to watch over the group.

 

Everyone was so focused on their tasks that it took a second for anyone to notice that Dean, Jack, and Kaia seemed unsettled. Cas came to Dean’s side. “Are you okay?”

 

The light touch of his hand on Dean’s arm made Dean snap out of it a little. “So, Cas, can a nephilim have two daddies?” 

 

“Are you thinking we need to start adding to our numbers?” Cas laughed. He settled a hand on Dean’s stomach. “Pregnancy would suit you.”

 

Dean swatted his hand away. “I’m serious. Is it possible.”

 

“Dean, I know you missed a lot of schooling growing up, but you did take some basic biology classes right?”

 

Dean turned to Kaia and Jack and said, “A little help here guys.”

 

“We looked at the baby,” Jack started.

 

Kaia added, “We were trying to see if we could tell who the father was, but…”   
  


“And,” Bobby said, as he and Mary joined the conversation.

 

Jack said, “The baby seems to be connected to both Sam and Gabriel. Kaia and I saw both of them in the baby.”

 

“That doesn’t make sense,” Cas said. “They can’t both be part of the child.”

 

“And yet they are,” Jack said.

 

“It was odd,” Kaia said again. “It wasn’t like seeing two halves of the creature. If I touch you,” she pointed at Jack and added, “I see your father and mother, but I also see the other influences on your existence. This was not like that.”

 

“Exactly,” Jack came closer to her and set a hand on her. “I’m blocked from seeing what you are. Like there’s a spell on you that keeps that knowledge secret. It’s the same with the kids.” He glanced back toward Sam’s room. “That was like seeing potential and reality all swirled up together.”

 

Bobby said, “Well that just puts us where we’ve been all along. We don’t need to be worrying over something we can’t change.” He went back to his pot of soup and started ladling it up. “Fuel up. Something tells me we’re gonna have a lot of work to tend to once that witch friend of yours gets here.”

 

Dean’s head swam with thoughts on what was to come and on what this baby could be.

 

* * *

  
  


Dean laid in bed that night listening to the hum of the bunker. Jack was watching the room full of sleepers. Cas was putting the babies to bed. Dean felt wired up, like something could go wrong at any minute, or like his thoughts were too many all at once. The door slid open and Cas came to the bed and sat to take off his shoes. Dean watched him in the dark. The little nightstand lamp that he put on Cas’ side of the bed gave the room a peaceful glow.

 

Cas looked to him and smiled. “They took a little work tonight.”

 

“You should have told me. I’d have helped.” Dean sat up a little. 

 

“No, you seemed like you needed the rest.” Cas got up, shedding clothes as he went before continuing, “Yet here you are still awake.” He threw back the blanket and sheets and got into bed. 

 

Dean could feel the warmth radiating off of him. Cas was striped down to just his boxers, and here he was pumping out heat like he was a hot summer sun. Dean’s thoughts didn’t linger long though. The baby was worrying him. “Cas?”

 

“Dean,” Cas switched off the lamp and rolled onto his side. Just enough light came through the vent on the door so that Dean could still make out the shape of Cas staring at him. “You seem tense.” Then Cas’ hand came over to Dean’s forehead where he pressed two fingers. “Oh, I forgot.”

 

“Trying to heal me there buddy?”

 

“Maybe. It seemed like you had a headache. Your brow is all scrunched up.” 

 

“I’m just worrying.” Dean rolled onto his side and faced Cas now. He reached out to him and dragged his hand up Cas’ arm. “You ever miss it, all that grace?”

 

“Only when I can’t use it to make you feel better.” Cas leaned forward and gave him a quick peck of a kiss on his cheek.

 

“You ever regret it, I mean giving it up?” 

 

“Don’t be stupid.” Castiel pushed him onto his back and then rolled on top of him. “I traded up. Now why are you worrying?”

 

“The baby.”

 

“Somehow it will work out. Max will be here in the morning, and we’ll save them.” Cas sounded so convincing that Dean felt his own muscles relax a little beneath the weight of him.

 

Cas began brushing back Dean’s hair, dipping down to trail light kisses along his temple. “That thing you said about pregnancy being a good look on me,” Dean said. Cas stopped kissing him and leaned back to look down at him. “What did you mean by that?”

 

“Dean, I was making a very obvious joke.” He had Dean boxed in, arms resting on both sides of Dean’s head. He rolled his hips a little. 

 

“But,” Dean looked away from the intensity of Cas’ staring. “Can that happen, if one of the partners was an angel?”

 

“Dean,” Cas sounded entirely exasperated now. “You do understand basic anatomy right?” Cas fully sat up in Dean’s lap and stared down at him. Dean nodded. “Then you know that I have a male body, and you have a male body. Neither of us has a womb.”

 

Dean interrupted him, placing his palms against Cas’ chest. “I know. I’ve just seen a lot of unbelievable stuff lately, and I want to know if it has ever happened.”

 

“Not that I’m aware of, and I’m aware of a great many things.” Cas dipped down in a fluid motion that mesmerized Dean a little. “I’m aware that you like the way I feel on you right now.”

 

“Well, that’s obvious.” Dean smirked.

 

“And I’m aware that you are worried about them. I get that. Transferring that fear onto something ridiculous is just how you’re coping.”

 

“I don’t think Sam will be able to take it if he loses someone again. Every woman he’s ever had feelings for has been taken from him. This is big. She’s maybe carrying his child.”

 

“It sounds like there’s no maybes about it. Jack and Kaia both said that Sam and Gabe are both in there.”

 

“But how?”

 

“In the morning, I’ll ask Jack to show me again. He was having a hard time the first time. I think it drained him a little. Plus, what he was seeing was getting all mixed up in how he was trying to make sense of it. The whole vision was messy. A little rest for him should make the whole thing clearer.”

 

Dean said, “Maybe we should go ask Kaia.”

 

“I didn’t even bother. Her mind will likely have even more layers of confusion for me to muddle through, especially when we consider the compulsion that she’s dealing with.”

 

‘I’d just rather know now. I won’t be able to sleep,” Dean said.

 

“In the morning.” Cas kissed a stripe down Dean’s jaw and then back to the edge of his ear. “I have other plans for right now, and sleep isn’t one of them.” 

 

* * *

 

The sun was dusting the sky in shades of pink and burnt orange as Max pulled up to the front of the seemingly abandoned site that Sam had described to him. “This can’t be it.” He looked around and added, “There’s no way anyone is in there.”

 

Alicia said, “He did say it was like a secret lair or something. It’s not supposed to look inhabited.”

 

“True.” Max got out of the car. He had been worrying about coming here from the moment he decided. Bringing Alicia seemed like a mistake. He cast a glance back at her sitting in the car and ran a hand up over his head to the back of his neck. He stretched out until his back cracked. He pressed his fingers into the muscles in his neck and kneaded away at them. Alicia got out and came to his side. “Maybe you should wait in the car ‘til I get back.”

 

“We’re a team, Max. If this place has something freaky in it, we face it together.” She smiled then and added, “Besides, this is likely just our friend’s place. You don’t need to be so jumpy.” She started trotting off toward the door, and before he could stop her, she knocked.

 

“Alicia,” Max started then rushed to join her. Their major weapons were in the car, but they had enough on them to suffice. Max pulled out a blade and had it ready at his side.

 

Alicia side-eyed him. “Really Max?”

 

“Really.” Then the door slid open, and a kid stood in front of him. “Well, that’s unexpected.”

 

“Hello,” she said. “Are you Max?”

 

“Yes, and this is my sister Alicia.” Max came down into a crouch. “Is this where Sam and Dean live?”

 

She nodded and stepped back to open the door wider, motioning them in as she did. “They told me to let you in when you arrived.”

 

“They weren’t worried about sending a child to the door of this place?” Max was muttering to himself.

 

Rebekah said, “I’m not as weak as you think I am.” She reached out and took his hand to lead him down the stairs, but Max felt the power rolling off of her. “You see?”

 

“I do.” He let her pull him along down the stairs. Alicia followed. 

 

“You are a good man,” Rebekah said. “A sad man though, like Sam. Will you be able to help him without making Rowena into something else?” She cast a glance at Alicia then looked back at Max.

 

“I will do my best.” This child was unnerving. Suddenly Dean was in the room, and then a bunch of other hunters were there too.

 

Dean said, “Why do you have a giant knife in your hand?”

 

Max dropped Rebekah’s hand and put the knife away. “Force of habit when going into new places.” He smiled like he was happy to be there and added, “Good to see you, Dean.”

 

Dean stepped up closer and shook his hand adding a good clap to the back of Max’s shoulder too. “Really good to see you too.” He turned to Alicia. “Thanks for coming to help us.” He took Alicia’s hand then and gave it a welcoming squeeze.” 

 

“Of course, Dean.” Alicia said. 

 

After that there were introductions. There were nephilim and hunters and a psychic. Max felt the power in them. The room was almost electric with it. Then they took him to Sam’s room, and the power in there was magnified tenfold. “Wow,” was all he could say. 

 

They set him up in a room and put Alicia across the hall from him. He’d told them that he needed to have a few moments to himself to put together what was needed, but really he needed to just think without all of them worrying at him.  _ I can do this. _ They’d have breakfast first, Dean had said. At least he could sift through all the feelings on a full stomach. When he emerged, Alicia was leaning against the wall opposite his room. “You okay?”

 

“Not so much. There’s a lot of power in this place.” They started walking back out to the main room. “I’m not sure if it’s this bunker or the beings in it, or maybe it’s everything.”

 

“You going to be able to work around it?”

 

“I gotta,” Max said with a shrug. They turned the corner into the main room and were greeted by a vast spread of breakfast foods and coffee. Max felt his stomach growl at the sight of it all. “I’m starving.” 

 

“Well, get on in here,” the one named Bobby called out. Max had heard of another Bobby, but what he’d heard was that he was dead. This Bobby Singer seemed to be quite alive.  _ Well, who am I to question this? _

 

Max took a seat opposite Dean. The angel, Castiel leaned into Dean’s space, a type of intimacy seemed to exist between them. Then Castiel kissed the edge of Dean’s jaw.  _ Well there’s another mystery solved. _ “When do you think you can work your magic?” Dean interrupted his thoughts.

 

“Once I’ve got a full stomach. Got a few questions though.” Max was scooping up a bunch of eggs from a bowl.

 

“Shoot,” Dean replied.

 

“Sam said that the spell was used to slow down gestation because Rowena might be pregnant with a nephilim. He said that the birth could kill her if the child is a nephilim.” Max noticed the way that Dean looked at Cas then back at him.

 

“Was that a question?” Dean asked.

 

“Have you figured out the baby’s parentage yet?”

 

“Yes, at least we think so,” Dean said looking at Cas again.

 

Cas cleared his throat. “I was able to look at the vision that both Jack and Kaia received from the child. They got the sense that the baby belonged to both Sam and Gabriel.”

 

“Wait, what?” Max asked.

 

“Yes, I know it’s weird,” Cas responded. “It makes sense though. It also explains the bond between the angel and Sam that has always been there.”

 

“Get with the explaining Cas,” Dean encouraged.

 

“Apologies,” Cas smiled as he said it. “It appears that the baby belongs to both Rowena and Sam; however, it is connected with Gabriel, not because he is the father, but because the child is a vessel.”

 

“A vessel,” Alicia asked.

 

“Yes, somehow, despite the fact that Sam was meant to be Lucifer’s vessel, and Rowena did not have a lineage that linked her to angels, this child is a vessel for the archangel Gabriel.” Castiel folded his arms in front of him and waited for the questions.

 

Bobby asked first, “So how does a person get to be a vessel? Just asking so I can keep from ending up in that situation.”

 

“It is usually something that one’s parents were born to do, then it gets passed down to the next generation and the next and so on.”

 

“So, that won’t cause Rowena’s death then. I just have to speed things back up to normal.” Max breathed out a heavy breath of air and felt like he could actually eat.

 

“Sounds right. There’s other issues that we need to wrap our heads around, but we can do that after the birth,” Dean said.

 

Mary said, “So why would a new vessel for Gabriel come to exist in a line that wasn’t his, especially now?”

 

“Good question.” Castiel took a sip of his coffee and then continued. “He’s dead, so the need for this sort of aberration seems odd.”

 

“Odd doesn’t begin to sum it up,” Dean said around a mouthful of food. “I mean we’ve got Gabe babies coming out of our ears here, and now we’ve got a vessel that’s about to be born. I’ve got more than a few questions about that.”

 

“So all of the nephilim belong to Gabriel?” Max asked.

 

“I’m the son of Lucifer,” Jack piped up. “Pass the coffee and the sugar please.”

 

“Well, that’s a lot to unpackage,” Max said as he passed the coffee. “So I’m just going to focus on the whole spell thing. You all can deal with the rest of the archangel mystery stuff.”

 

“Can you see what the baby looks like?” Alicia asked.

 

“No, it’s not like that. We get a vision of it’s essence,” Kaia said. Jack nodded in agreement. 

 

“Gabe’s last vessel was created by Loki, or at least that’s what we gathered from the limited details that he gave us,” Dean said. “He wasn’t always the most reliable narrator.”

 

“Big, giant liar,” Cas added. 

 

* * *

 

 

When breakfast was finished, it was just a matter of gathering the necessary ingredients. Max laughed with Cas as they carried everything into the room saying, “I probably could have just texted you lot the spell.”

 

“In our defense it did seem like it’d be much more complicated.” Cas laid out the ingredients in the bedroom and the others crowded into the space behind him. 

 

Max waved them back, and Patience and Alex took the children out of the room. Jack followed them to the doorway.  Max closed his eyes and delivered the spell. Then Cas added the items one at a time to the large silver bowl. He echoed Max as he dropped each item into the bowl. Without warning, Rowena shot up from the bed, ramrod straight.

 

She gasped out, “Oh no, you’ve undone it!” 

 

Sam scrambled up to her side. The others stirred to full wakefulness. “I’m here. Breathe, Rowena. I’ve got you.” 

 

She fell back onto the bed again, breaths coming fast. Mary pushed them aside and moved aside the blankets to check Rowena’s dilation. “Oh, that came fast.” 

 

Jody looked back at Dean. “Did you all figure this thing out?”

 

“We did. She’s going to be okay.” Dean glanced over at Sam. “You’re about to be a father.”

 

“I know that,” Sam said as he started the lamaze breathing again. Then he seemed to realize what he just heard. “Wait,” he said as looked up from Rowena’s face to Dean’s. “You mean, like fully the father here?”

 

“Yeah, what’d you think I meant?” Dean asked.

 

Rowena gripped Sam’s hand and said, “I swear to all that’s holy, Sam Winchester that you won’t be the father of anything if you all keep having this stupid conversation.” Cas ushered them all out. No one went far though. They just hovered at the door while Mary, Cas, and Sam did what was needed.

 

“This should be over soon?” Cas soothed. 

 

“I hope…” Rowena’s contraction became intense. “I think it’s time.”

 

Mary looked again and said, “Maybe. Try giving it a good push.”

 

* * *

 

 

Claire fell asleep in the rocker facing the babies. In the night, someone put a blanket on her and turned out the lights. She suspected Sam. He was always skulking about. She was surprised that the babies hadn’t woken her up, especially since she’d already gotten so much sleep. She’d opted to watch the babies for the night so that Dean and Cas could get some sleep. At least that’s what she told herself. Watching the babies gave her distraction, something she needed. 

 

Now that the endless labor was over, she’d have to deal with Kaia. She didn’t want to do that, and at the same time, she really did. Avoidance won out as the more comfortable option.

 

Claire let her eyes slowly adjust to the low lighting in the room. She nearly fell out of her chair in shock when her eyes landed on Kaia in the corner. “Good morning.” Kaia got up and retrieved the blanket that had fallen when Claire jumped. She held it out to her. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

 

“You didn’t scare me.” Clearly that was a lie. “I mean, I’m not scared. I was surprised is all.” Claire stood and folded up the blanket. “What are you doing in here?”

 

“Everyone is busy. And then there is the fussing over the human baby. I figured I’d rather be in here.” Kaia was looking down into the crib at the sleeping baby. “I hope it was okay that I changed this one.” She pointed down at Samuel.

 

“I didn’t even hear him cry.” Claire came to the crib and looked down at him too. He looked so peaceful, his little fist curled up and resting against his lips. His tiny blue footie pajamas had lambs on it. Claire wanted to pick him up and cuddle him close. She wondered where that feeling came from. She’d never had even the slightest inkling of maternal feels for anyone, and here she was wanting to breathe in the heady aroma of fresh powdered baby.  _ Perhaps babies are magic.  _

 

“They can tell me little things.” Kaia reached down and gently stroked Samuel’s cheek with her finger.

 

“So he told you he was filling a diaper?” They were standing close now. Claire felt the warmth radiating off of Kaia. If she leaned just a bit, actual contact would be easily initiated. 

 

Kaia turned to her, hair falling in her face as she did. “He did. He also gives off feelings, longings.”

 

“For food and whatnot?”

 

“Something like that,” Kaia said as she leaned a little. Their arms were pressed together. “He loves Castiel a great deal. He is happiest in his presence.” She pointed at Ellie then and said, “She loves Dean so much, I’m sure she’d do anything for him.”

 

“I know Dean and Cas love them right back. We all do.” Claire reached down and smoothed back the wayward strand of hair that was tickling Ellie’s face. “It must be nice to be so well and truly loved.”

 

Kaia stepped away and wandered over to the low bookshelf that was now filled with a nice collection of children’s board books. She dragged her fingers over them. “I wish I knew that feeling. I’ve only ever caught glimpses of it from when I wasn’t all me.”

 

“Your father loved you.” Claire came to her side. “Seems like he made some pretty crazy efforts toward protecting you.”

 

A derisive laugh shot out of Kaia. “Yeah, crazy being the operative word there. I’ve watched enough tv, read enough books, to know what a loving family looks like. It looks a whole lot more like what I’ve seen in just the short time I’ve been here than anything my father ever did.”

 

“I’m sorry,” Claire whispered.

 

“You don’t need to be sorry. I just…” Kaia turned to her abruptly. “I’m sorry I tried to kill you before.”

 

“Huh?”

 

Kaia continued, “I think it matters. I think I owe you at least this insufficient cluster of words. I’m sorry. I can make mountains of excuses about where I came from and who I am, but at the end of the day, I guess I’m more like my father than I want to be. I’m brash and impulsive. I remember sitting next to you on Jody’s front steps and feeling like there was a riot in my stomach.”

 

Claire laughed at that. “Same.”

 

Kaia just stared at her in silence for a moment. “I remember the other me though, the one that had a mission. You were in the way of the mission. I intended to kill you, and the moment I missed, I felt it all, everything she felt. You weren’t the enemy. You weren’t even close. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” 

 

“You didn’t know. The way you had to live. You had no one. Did you ever have even one moment of kindness shown to you in your entire existence?”

 

“Yes, on Jody’s front steps.”

 

“I mean before you,” Claire searched for a way to finish the sentence that didn’t include the word  _ kill _ and went with, “fused with your other self.”

 

“She came to the Bad Place. She always left with scars, but she showed me kindness, but that’s just me.”

 

Claire reached out and set a hand on Kaia’s arm. “I don’t blame you.”

 

“You should.”

 

Claire said, “I don’t. If it helps, I understand you. I also forgive you.”

 

“You don’t have to say that. I see the way that you’ve been avoiding me. You can barely look at me.”

 

“That’s because I don’t know how to be with you. I don’t know if you are three steps back from when I last saw you or a whole world of different. I don’t know if you feel the connections that she felt or if it was all her.”

 

“I feel it. I absolutely feel it.” Kaia locked her gaze on Claire. 

 

“Then maybe you accept that I forgive you and we build from there.”

 

Kaia nodded. 

 

Claire stepped up closer and kissed her cheek. 

 

“What was that for?”

 

“That was me asking you if you wanted to go out to the kitchen with me for a cup of coffee.”

 

Kaia just stood there absorbing the words, then she threaded her fingers with Claire’s and they walked out of the room together.


	14. What Love Looks Like

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the long wait. I had so much writing that had to happen. So what says Merry Christmas more than a chapter about Halloween and a new born baby? Not much, right. So here's the long awaited chapter. If you liked it, you might also like the Holiday fic I just posted the other day. No waiting for updates on that one as it is all there. I also have the DCBB posted in its entirety too. Happy Holidays to all of you, and thanks for reading my fics.

Dean disentangled himself from Cas and made his way out into the hall. It was early, and though he liked the feel of warmth that Cas wrapped around him supplied, he really felt the need for coffee. It had been a long couple of weeks. The birth of the baby and the anxiety that Dean had somehow managed to keep buried, for the most part, gave him an odd, almost heavy night’s sleep. 

 

He pulled on his clothes in the dark and Cas muttered in his sleep as he rolled over to face the other wall. He was an adorable sleeper. Dean stared at the little lump that he knew was Cas all bunched up in blankets. Dean turned to the door and headed out into the hall. One step into the space and there was Sam, pacing with the baby in his arms. 

 

Dean felt his own smile tugging away at his cheeks. “Mornin’ Pops.” Dean leaned into the wall next to his door and waited for Sam to pace back to him. 

 

Sam whispered back, “Mornin’.” He stopped in front of Dean and rocked back and forth. “She was crying, and she didn’t need food or a fresh diaper, so I figured this might help. Plus, Rowena really needed a lot more sleep.”

 

“Well, she’s not crying now, so good job.” Dean leaned closer and looked at her face, all wide awake and taking in everything. “Wanna let Uncle Dean take a stab at the holding thing?”

 

“Not just yet. We’re still bonding,” Sam said with a grin.

 

“Still being selfish with the baby, huh? You gotta let me hold her sometime.”

 

Sam laughed, then said, “I will. Just let me get use to all this first before I go passing her around.”

 

“Fair, fair.” Dean brushed a finger over her cheek. “Who's your favorite uncle?” Dean's voice dropped into the silly tone adults employ for infants.

 

Bobby came out of one of the far rooms as Dean was repeating his question. Bobby chimed in with, “Her uncle Bobby, of course.”

 

Bobby leaned in and cooed at her. Sam asked, “Is that what we should have her call you?”

 

Bobby shrugged. “Doesn't bother me. Kids are cute.” Then he strolled down the hall and seemingly toward the kitchen as if nothing big just happened. 

 

“That was…” Sam started.

 

“Yeah,” Dean acknowledged. “Why don't you let me hold her while you go check on Bobby, see if you can call him uncle too.”

 

Sam just rolled his eyes. “How's it going with Cas?”

 

“Smooth subject change there.” Dean cast a glance back at the door to his room, their room now. “Good, real good.”

 

“So no more weird denials.”

 

“It was never that. I just didn't know what we were, and the thought of ruining this maybe thing we had going before it even got started seemed like some sort of Greek tragedy. Didn't want that, so I was dumb.”

 

Sam started rocking back and forth in an almost dance. “Cas seems really happy too. I'm happy for you guys.” Sam leaned down and kissed his daughter on the forehead. 

 

“Gonna tell us the name today?” Dean asked.

 

“We'll see if Rowena is up for that yet.” 

 

“Already whipped.”

 

Sam scowled at him then said, “You're an idiot.” Dean laughed, then Sam added, “But I'm guessing you know a thing or two about what it looks like to be whipped.”

 

Sam headed off with his baby. Dean called after him, “What's that supposed to mean?” Sam just laughed.

 

* * *

 

The world seemed to have changed for the better once the baby came. The sun came up and the halls weren't filled with anguish anymore. Now there were other noises, children running in the halls, playing. The low hum of the bunker and conversations gave the place a type of peace.

 

“Alex and I really have to get back. I was pushing it already with this extra week.” Jody set her dish in the drying rack and turned to the others in the room. Dean and Cas had their babies, and Mary and Alex held Brie and Zeke.

 

“What, Sioux Falls can’t figure out how to run without you?” Dean said with a smile.

 

“Oh, they can in some regards, but I really shouldn’t push it.” Jody came over to sit with them. “They understand things better than most towns.”

 

Mary asked, “What do you mean?”

 

“Just that we’ve had our fair share of creepy run through our town. We’ve had monsters and our own relatives coming back from the dead in a not so great way.” Jody’s eyes dropped to the table and with a sigh she continued. “You don’t forget a thing like that. To lose someone once is bad enough, but to lose them a second time in so violent a way, well…”

 

Mary looked like she was going to ask something, but Dean interrupted. “So the people in town talk about what happened?”

 

Jody laughed, a dry mirthless laugh. “Oh, no. Not even close. We seem to all have a mutual agreement, that although we know what happened, we don’t talk about it. They let me spin my yarns about wolves or rare mountain lions ripping through the area. They know it’s not true, but I do the respectful thing and give them a lie that can be their truth.”

 

“In that, we’re all not so different,” Cas said. “My lies are usually pretty believable, but still I sometimes find it interesting how easy it is to get people to believe them.”

 

Dean laughed now saying, “Your lies are so bad. I’m surprised anyone believes them. Agent Beyonce…” Dean snorted out another laugh.

 

“I see no problem with that name, despite your repeated issues with it.” Cas turned his attention to little Samuel. “Beyonce is a highly respected musician.”

 

Now everyone laughed at the little domestic drama in front of them. “I’m going to miss this,” Jody said.

 

“We’ll miss you too,” Mary said as she got up and set a hand on her shoulder.

 

“You’ll just have to come visit. Bring the babies.” Jody smiled at her with genuine affection that carried across the little distance. “You can also bring that grumpy man with you too, but only if he stops scowling at me the whole time.”

 

They both laughed. “I told him that you didn't hate him. He just naturally has that grumpy look I think.”

 

“Yeah, the other Bobby did too.” Jody knocked on the table and got up. “Well, kiddo, you ready or do you need to say goodbye to the masses?”

 

Alex got up and one arm hugged Cas and then Dean. She came around the table and hugged Mary too. “I should go hand off this one to someone then go say bye to Claire, Jack, and Patience.”

 

“Patience really wants to stay with us huh?” Dean asked.

 

“She thought that she might be of use with the babies and such. I figure one of you can run her back home to us if she gets bored.” Jody nodded to the door and Alex followed. “I’ll miss you guys. Really come on out for a visit soon. It’ll be like a campout for the kids.”

 

“You got it.” Dean followed her to the doorway and then came back. He sat down heavily in his seat like he was already feeling the weight of her absence. “It’s gonna be weird not having her here.”

 

“It will. We just need to make sure to go out and see her before too long.” Mary rocked Brie back and forth, humming a little tune to her as she did. “You all know that tomorrow is Halloween right?”

 

Dean shot a look at Cas then back at Mary. “I totally forgot.” 

 

Cas added, “Should we be doing something for the kids?”

 

“Probably. The babies won’t care much, but the other ones will like it if their birthdays were any indication,” Mary said.

 

“Speaking of,” Cas began, “we really need to finish celebrating the kids. Maybe once November starts up.”

 

“So costumes?” Dean interrupted.

 

“You could go into the city and make some purchases. Smith Center might have some stuff for that, but it is last minute.”

 

Dean and Cas both nodded. “We should do that today then.” Dean looked down at Ellie in his arms and asked, “Could we leave the babies with you? It’d be a hell of a lot quicker without them.”

 

“Yeah, but why don’t you two take the older kids, let them pick out their costumes?” Mary suggested.

 

“That sounds like a solid plan.” Dean got up and Cas followed him. 

 

Cas asked, “You suddenly comfortable leaving the babies behind?”

 

“It’s my mom. She’s gonna be great. It’s Sam that lacks all parenting skills.”

 

Mary laughed. “I’m pretty sure even he’s gonna be fine in that regard; although, I appreciate the vote of confidence.”

 

* * *

 

Dean and Cas got Rebekah, Phobos, and Deimos in the back seat. They handed each one a granola bar to munch on during the journey. Phobos said, “We don’t need to eat.”

 

“Take the granola bar, kid,” Dean said. “It’s good for you.” He gave Phobos a little smile and closed the door. A moment later and he was in his own seat, ready to go. He glanced in the rearview mirror at Phobos as he opened the granola bar and gave it a tentative sniff. Tipping his head, Phobos took a tiny bit. 

 

“Tastes like earth,” Phobos said, adding, “but sweeter.” He took another bite, and this seemed to encourage the others. Deimos had the same reaction.

 

Rebekah seemed to like it more, devouring hers in just three bites. “I like sugar. This is a sugar bar.”

 

Cas glanced at Dean and said, “Hope you didn’t make a mistake giving them those. We’ve got a little drive to make.”

 

“It’ll be fine. They’re part angel, and angels love sugar.” Dean winked at Cas. 

 

“If you say so,” Cas said.

 

“I do. And don’t think I haven’t seen how much sugar you put in things. You’re gonna rot your teeth out.” Dean drove out of the garage.

 

“I’m not an angel anymore, and my sugar consumption is typical when one considers human averages.”

 

“I’m just picking on you.” Dean reached over and set a hand on Cas’ thigh. 

 

Deimos interrupted their banter. “What is Halloween? And why are costumes so important?”

 

“It’s just a fun holiday where kids get to dress up and get candy.” Dean glanced back at them through the rearview mirror. “You liked the pinatas at your birthday party, right?”

 

Phobos said, “Those were fun. I liked the tiny candy inside.”

 

“I liked the smashing,” Deimos said.

 

Dean laughed a little and said, “Well, there will be less smashing with trick-or-treating, but there will be plenty of candy.” Dean glanced at them again. Phobos looked excited, while Deimos looked slightly disappointed. “Maybe we can find something for you to smash,” Dean added. Deimos looked up at him in the mirror and smiled.

 

“Thanks, Dean.” 

 

“No problem, D.” Dean smiled and returned his focus to driving.

 

Cas turned a little in his seat and asked, “So you should consider what sorts of costumes you’d like to try out. The store will have a lot of choices.”

 

“I want to be a witch,” Rebekah said.

 

“Oh,” Dean responded. “Any reason for that choice?”

 

“Sam likes witches.” Her simple declaration was met with hums of acceptance. “What will you two be?” Rebekah asked.

 

“Cas and I?”

 

“Yeah, you have to dress up too, right?”

 

Dean shrugged. “Don’t know. Cas, any thoughts?”

 

“Jack told me that you already had some ideas on that front.” Cas raised an eyebrow.

 

Dean remembered then that he had said something vague to Jack about picking up some cowboy costumes for him and Cas. It was an off-hand comment that was more of a joke than anything. Leave it to Jack to take it seriously. “That was a joke.”

 

“Sure Dean.”

 

“It was.”

 

Cas smiled and said, “Since when have you ever joked about cowboys,” then after a pause, Cas added, “Pardner,” in his best cowboy drawl. 

 

Dean felt the little goose bumps rise up over his arms. “Guess we’ll be cowboys then.”

 

“Or Bert and Ernie. Sam said something about you wanting to dress up like them or something,” Cas said.

 

“Nope, cowboys. You want to be cowboys and who am I to take away your fun,” Dean laughed as he said it. Cas just raised his eyebrow ever higher. At this point he was in danger of losing it in his hairline. Dean laughed even harder, and they drove on toward their day of shopping.

 

* * *

 

The pop-up Halloween store was crowded with last minute shoppers. Dean snaked his way through the open door to the big display of talking yard figures, screeching cats, chainsaw wielding masked men, ghosts, and lurching zombies. All so inaccurate also straight out of his horror movie loving dreams.

 

The kids ran off toward the costumes leaving Cas and Dean behind. “I don’t think we’ll need these. We won’t be getting trick-or-treaters.”

 

“No, they’re just cool.” Dean stepped on one of the buttons and an angry devil laughed maniacally. Cas scowled. “Too close to home?” Dean moved on to the next one. “Sorry. Let’s cleanse the palate with a nice dose of David Yaegar. ‘Dean stepped on the button next to the burned figure of a man in a mechanic’s outfit. He held a fake blood soaked knife. He moved it a little and said, “Time to slice and dice.”

 

“You like this stuff?” Cas asked with a slight tilt to his head.

 

“Yeah, this stuff is just silly. It’s not like the real monsters at all.” Then Dean felt the little pull on his jacket. He looked down at Phobos. “What’s up, little man?” Dean stooped down. 

 

“I might need help getting a costume down. I could use my powers, but that would draw attention.” 

 

Dean nodded and scooped up the kid. He hoisted him up onto his shoulders. Phobos’ little hands gripped Dean’s forehead. “Cas why don’t you go help the other two before they get any revealy ideas.”

 

Cas moved off to the far end of the store where Rebekah and Deimos were pointing at a high shelf. Even from here, Dean could see Deimos’ fingers spark with desire. “Deimos, don’t do it,’ Phobos whispered.

 

Deimos looked back at them, and his fingers stopped sparking. “Thanks kiddo. Not sure how we’d explain that.” Dean started marching off to the kid’s costume section. “What sort of costume were you thinking?”

 

“I found a pinata costume. I could be full of candy.”

 

Dean laughed. “Really?”

 

“Maybe something else though.” Phobos pointed up to the top of the wall shelves. 

 

“Why do they put kid’s costumes so high?” Dean questioned no one. He popped up on his toes a little and said, “Can you reach it?” Phobos reached out and pulled down the werewolf costume. “So that one does it for you?”

 

“It’s a dog. I like dogs.” Phobos flipped it over to look at the back.

 

“You sure Sam didn’t make you think that?” Dean lowered him down to the floor and said, “We should try it on first, see how it looks.” Cas joined him with the other two kids and together they shuffled them into the changing rooms. They waited outside for the inevitable fashion show. “What’d Rebekah and Deimos pick?”

 

“You will just have to see. I mean, you already know what Rebekah was after, but Deimos had other interesting plans.”

 

“Interesting. That word scares me.”

 

Cas laughed, “At least it's a nice scary.” He leaned in closer and asked, “So, you going to find us some cowboy costumes?”

 

“We could just rummage through what I already own. Not like we need to buy something.”

 

“You gonna make me wear that ugly, dumb hat from Tombstone?”

 

“No, I’m gonna make you wear a Stetson, a real one.” Dean settled his hand on Cas’ back. “You should try it on tonight though and make sure it fits.”

 

Cas pressed a quick kiss to Dean’s jaw. “Perhaps.”

 

The kids came out in their costumes and Dean nearly choked when he saw Deimos in his little angel costume, complete with a halo. “Well, aren’t you all just awesome.” Dean came down into a squat and straightened out Deimos’ halo. Then he adjusted Phobos’ mask so he could see out of the eye holes. Then he tipped back Rebekah’s pointy witch hat so he could see her face. “You all look amazing. You happy with these then?”

 

They all nodded and then went back into the changing room. “That might have been a minor miracle,” Cas said. “I thought we’d be here for hours.”

 

“Don’t jinx it, babe.” Dean started to walk away. He turned and said, “You get the kids in the line. I have something I saw when we walked in that I want to pick up for the babies. I’ll meet you in the line.” Cas just nodded and went back to waiting for the kids.

 

* * *

 

Sam sat in his room with Rowena and their baby. “She’s really beautiful.” Sam leaned down and kissed her head for what must have been the millionth time in less than 24 hours.

 

“She really is.” Rowena held out her arms, and Sam finally relinquished the child. Rowena looked down at the peaceful sleeping face of her daughter and smiled warmly. “We’ll call them in tonight before they all go trick-or-treating. We’ll introduce them to this little one and then send them on their way.”

 

“I told Dean that we’d likely do that tonight.”

 

“I know. You were right outside the door.” Sam moved from the chair to the side of the bed to sit. He settled a hand on Rowena’s hip and stared down at the child. “You’ll let them hold her too.”

 

“I will.” Sam let his thumb stroke a path back and forth on Rowena. “I can’t believe she’s really here.”

 

Rowena set a hand on his. “Our little miracle.” Rowena eased up into a sitting position, careful not to jostle the baby too much. “Did you know that Rebekah came to see me this morning?”

 

“She did?” Sam moved across the mattress to sit closer to Rowena. Once he had his back to the headboard, he slipped his arm around her. She nuzzled into the space. 

 

“She said that she wanted to try healing me again. I told her that healing a witch like me was maybe a bad idea.” Rowena looked down at the baby then back up into Sam’s eyes. “She said that she needed the practice so that she could use her powers on regular humans that might need it in the future.”

 

“You let her do it?”

 

“I did, and we are both okay.” Rowena looked away a little guiltily.

 

“You could have both gotten hurt, and for what?” Sam’s voice was a little higher pitched, a little angry too.

 

“I knew we’d be okay. She didn’t hurt me before, and she didn’t hurt herself. She really did need the practice, and she was clearly holding back this time.” Rowena reached up with her free hand and angled his face to hers. “I’m all healed up, Samuel. She made everything okay.”

 

Sam dipped his head to hers and rested his forehead there for a moment before speaking. “I need you to be careful. We can’t lose you.” He swallowed loudly and added, “I can’t lose you.”

 

“I’m not going anywhere.” She kissed him lightly. “I’m not going anywhere,” she repeated.

 

“I’ve lost everyone that has ever mattered to me. Everyone, Rowena.” He leaned back, his eyes in danger of spilling over with tears. “No risks, please.”

 

She pulled him back and kissed him harder this time. When she let him go, she said, “Life is full of risks. I’ll not stop living just to keep you from worry. We won’t raise her in isolation either.” She stroked his cheek. “You know me though, Samuel. Even Lucifer couldn’t keep me down. I won’t heel like some dog. I won’t pass from this world without a fight. And if I ever do die, it will be on my terms, defending my family to the end.”

 

He leaned in and kissed her. He worried, but he felt the strength of her conviction. There was a gentle tapping at the door. Sam let her go and sat up straighter. “Come in.”

 

Jack slowly opened the door and peeked past the crack. “I just,” he looked between them. “I can come back.”

 

“Come in here,” Rowena said, beckoning him in with a wave of her hand. “I was wondering when you’d come meet your little sister.”

 

Jack’s lips spread into a bright smile. He came closer to the bed. Rowena shifted the baby and moved to sit over the edge of the bed. She patted the space next to her. “You sure I’m not bothering you two?”

 

“Not even a little.” Sam moved from where he was sitting to take up space on the other side of Jack. 

 

“You want to hold her?” Rowena asked. Sam was about to say something but bit his lip instead. 

 

“I would.” Jack made a cradle of his arms.

 

Rowena slipped the swaddled baby to him. “Just keep her like that. Her neck is weak at the moment.”

 

“I read about that. They’re so delicate.” He ran a soft finger over her cheek. “Hello, tiny human,” he whispered down to her. “I’m going to be the best big brother you’ll ever have.” 

 

Sam swiped at an eye that was not giving the world a second bath of tears in the last so many minutes. He wrapped an arm around Jack and Rowena and held them. “I don’t know what I did to deserve this moment, but it is everything.” Rowena leaned into Jack’s shoulder and hugged them all back. “I’m glad Dean’s not here to see this. He was just asking to hold her this morning, and I was being a bit of a Scrooge.”

 

“If it helps, I can keep it to myself,” Jack offered.

 

“Keep what to yourself?” The voice from the door drew all of their eyes. Mary stood, arms crossed over her chest. “Finally you’re sharing the little angel with the rest of us.” She walked over to stand in front of Jack. “Time to let me meet my little grandbaby.” She held out her hands.

 

“I’m sorry mom,” Sam said.

 

“Don’t be. Just let me hold her.” Jack angled her out a little and Mary took her into her arms. She said, “Oh, look at you, look at you.” She looked to Rowena and said, “It’s so easy to forget how small they are in the beginning. Even the other babies came to us a little farther along than newborn sized.”

 

“I remember when Fergus was born. He was all long arms and legs and chubby little cheeks. He was never this small though, surely.”

 

“I bet he was at first.” Mary leaned down and breathed in the baby. “I can’t believe I’m holding her.”

 

“I can’t believe she’s here either.” Rowena got up and half hugged Mary. Sam watched all of this in a quiet awe. It should have felt very weird. It didn’t though. 

 

“Aside from this blessed moment, I was actually coming back to tell you all that lunch is on the table.” Mary seemed to notice then that Rowena was standing. “Wait, shouldn’t you still be in bed?”

 

“I’m all healed up, thanks to Rebekah. Don’t you fret.” Rowena nodded for the door. “Let’s get out of this room then and be like real people.” 

 

Mary nodded and lead the way. They each followed her out to the kitchen where the others would be waiting. Sam set his hand on Rowena’s back and tried to quell his worrying. He wondered if he’d always worry. Her words comforted him in the moment. Yes, Lucifer couldn’t even keep her down. That hardly mattered though, when the world was always full of things sent, seemingly, to just torment them. His fingers involuntarily gripped the back of her gown. She wrapped her arm around him and held him back when they got to the kitchen. Their eyes met, and he could see that she was trying to tell him something in that soft moment. Maybe stop worrying, stop expecting the worst, stop thinking so much. She stood on tip-toes, and he met her halfway for a quick kiss. 

 

She whispered, “I love you, Samuel.”


	15. Her Name

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd like to wish you all a very lovely new year. May the world be brighter and more kind than it has been in the past. May you have all that you need and love to spare.

 

They gathered in the war room which Dean thought really needed a new name now. Maybe the family room. They sat around the table. Mary opened a bottle of champagne, and everyone was toasting the newborn baby. The kids were still decked out in their costumes having completed their first successful Halloween. Claire, Jack, Kaia, and Patience helped them lay out the spoils of the night’s trick-or-treating, so that they could all see just how successful they all were.

 

The babies had been put down for the night, Their tiny costumes removed. Dean had dressed Ellie and Samuel in tiny horse costumes and then he and Cas just cared them around while wearing their cowboy costumes. It was pretty funny. 

 

For Bobby and Mary’s little munchkins Dean purchased matching alien costumes. It looked like they were bursting from Bobby and Mary’s chests when they were holding them. Dean cracked up as they dressed the babies. Mary was entirely happy to get the babies out of their costumes and into bed. Dean still found himself chuckling away long after they got back to the bunker. 

 

Now they were all gathered and waiting for Sam and Rowena’s big announcement. They were finally going to have a name for the newest addition to the bunker. Dean popped up onto the table and let his legs hang. Cas came over to him and took up residence in front of him. Dean pulled him closer, wrapping his arms around his chest and tucking his chin over Cas’ shoulder. 

 

Mary came over and refilled their glasses. She smiled and said, “Ready to get a name for this bundle of joy?”

 

“So much,” Dean said as he tipped back a bit of the champagne. He let his eyes sweep over the room, and all the joy that could be had seemed to be settled right into the space in front of him. “You ever think we’d be this lucky?”

 

Mary settled a hand on his arm and let her gaze drift over the room. “Not even a little.” She leaned in and planted a kiss on Cas’ cheek and then Dean’s before she moved back to her space by Bobby.

 

Dean hollered over to Sam, “You all gonna get with the announcing?” It was good-natured, and Sam smiled back at him.

 

Rowena said, “We’re just waiting on Max and Alicia.” 

 

As if the words summoned them, Max and Alicia strolled into the room. “Did we miss it?” Alicia asked.

 

“Not a bit,” Charlie said. She patted the space next to her. “Come, sit with me.” They did just that. Alicia sat next to Charlie, and Max was on the other side of his sister.

 

Patience leaned into their space. “I was wondering,” she paused a moment then continued, “how long you might be staying?”

 

Max tipped his head and seemed to think about it a moment. “A few more days, maybe. Why?”

 

“I was just thinking that maybe you could teach me a few things.” Patience was wringing her hands a little. “I’m a psychic, but sometimes it is hard to get at the truth behind the vision.” She leveled her gaze on him. “I thought that maybe there might be some spellwork that could help.”

 

“Rowena is far more powerful than I am. Why not ask her?”

 

Patience glanced away then back at him. “She’s got a new baby. I just thought, she’d like to focus on that for now.” She swallowed. “I get that you’re busy too though. If you don’t have the time, I understand.”

 

He set a hand on her knee and said, “I have time. I just don’t know that I’ll be of much help.”

 

A slow smile pulled at her mouth. “Thanks.”

 

Sam cleared his throat, and everyone refocused on him and Rowena. “Thanks for putting up with all of the suspense. Rowena and I are so grateful that we have all of you in our lives. This has been, to put it mildly, a harrowing experience.”

 

Rowena interrupted, “For me.” They all laughed. “Really, though, I could not ask for a better group to hang my hat with. You have been quite good to me, and I know that this is more than I’ve earned.”

 

Sam pulled her into a sideways hug. We all come with a past that we each had to rise above. He cleared his throat and looked at Dean. “Come up here, Dean.” Sam reached out with his free hand and beckoned his brother over.

 

Dean slipped down from the table and went to him. “You gonna try to have some chick flick moment with me?”

 

“Hey, sexist!” Charlie called out.

 

“Sorry,” Dean said with a grin.

 

Sam set a hand on Dean's shoulder and said, “Our childhood wasn’t typical after Mom died.” Sam let his eyes leave Dean's. He found his mom and nodded her way. Her eyes carried sadness. “I'm grateful for every day that we've been given back with you.” 

 

“I love you, Sam,” Mary said.

 

“Love you too, mom,” Sam replied. He turned his attention to Dean again. He gave Dean's shoulder a little squeeze. “This one here though, went above and beyond the call of duty. He was my brother, my closest friend, and when needed, my mother and my father both.”

 

“Sammy,” Dean started.

 

“You're not gonna stop me Dean.” Dean nodded and let him continue. “Dad was gone a lot after Mom died. So Dean made all of my meals, got me to school, fixed scrapes and bruises. He taught me to read, in multiple languages.” He laughed softly. “It's not most fifth graders that can read Latin like it's their first language, but Dean made sure I knew what was needed to get by.”

 

“Had to make sure you could perform a quality exorcism.”

 

“It was more than that,” Sam said as he swiped at his eye with the back of his hand. “It was the time you took. It was the way that you played games with me. It was the way you stepped in when Dad and I were getting too angry with each other. It was how much you loved me.”

 

Dean looked down at his feet. “Come on Sam.”

 

Sam reached over to Rowena and took his daughter into his hands. He stood in front of Dean with her. “I'm sorry I didn't let you hold her sooner. It's been so long since I had something so good happen to me. I just wanted to never let go of her.” He held her out to Dean who let her settle into the crook of his arm.

 

She looked so peaceful, eyes closed, and lips curled up into a slight smile. “She's beautiful, Sammy.” Dean's eyes grew misty. “Clearly takes after her uncle.”

 

They all laughed. “I only hope that I'll be half the father to her that you were to me.” Sam clapped him on the back. “Now take her over to Cas while Rowena and I finish thanking everyone.” Sam had tears running down his cheeks and so did Dean. Cas wrapped an arm around Dean when he came back to his side with the tiny child.

 

Rowena stepped forward. Sam was going to say some more now, but he is having the chick flick moment we’ve all heard so much of. Mostly just affects Winchester men, so most of us should be safe.” They all laughed again. “So I'll just offer up my thanks.” Her eyes danced over the crowd of faces, landing on Max's. “Max, Alicia, would you both mind coming up here?”

 

“Us?” Max looked at his sister who was already standing. 

 

“Come on bro,” Alicia reached down to pull him up.

 

They made their way to Rowena. “You don't owe us anything. We're glad to have helped,” Max said.

 

Rowena set a hand on each of their shoulders. Ignoring his words, Rowena said, “It takes so much bravery to risk all that you love for a complete stranger.” Rowena leveled her gaze on Max, then looked out at the others. “Each of us has known what it is to sacrifice for others, and some of us even know what it is to die for a cause.” She dragged her hands down their arms and lifted their hands in hers. “Live and die, and come back to do it all again--the hunter’s way.”

 

“I'm just glad it worked,” Max said quietly, seeming to focus on only part of her words.

 

“Me too.” Rowena looked at Max's hand, the large ring that he wore seemed to be her focus. “Some of us have had to sacrifice far too much. The cost the universe levied on some of us for love is incredibly high.”

 

Max seemed like he was about to pull away. Then he said, “No cost could be too high for someone you love.”

 

“I think you've been asked to pay too steep a price, and I'd like to remedy that.” Their clasped hands glowed purple. The light extended and seemed as if it would cover them all entirely. Rowena breathed out a few words in an unfamiliar language. The purple light pulsed. Rowena's eyes seemed to be made of purple flames. Symbols showed up on her skin, bright and oozing with power. “Max,” and then she turned adding, “Alicia. Allow me to claim you both as part of my coven.”

 

“Yes,” Alicia said without hesitation.

 

Max looked at her, fear in his eyes. “Wait, what?”

 

“Your sister has already agreed. Join us.”

 

“She can't consent unless I do,” Max said.

 

“And yet she did,” Rowena said with a smile.

 

“How? She can’t…”

 

“I gave her back her will. She's not a puppet.” Rowena squeezed Max's hand. “Please Max. Say yes.”

 

Alicia looked at him. “Please Max,” she repeated.

 

He kept looking to Alicia, then said, “Yes.”

 

The light pulsed again, and then came back to a singular place. Max's hand was the only thing glowing now. Rowena let go of Alicia and set her other hand over Max's, covering the ring. She breathed out a few more words. Then the light seemed to suck into their hands. Rowena released him. “You and your sister are safe now.”

 

“Safe from what,” Max asked.

 

“Look at your ring,” Rowena said.

 

Max looked down at his hand. “Oh no.” He reached out and pulled Alicia the him. “No, no, no.”

 

Rowena smiled. “You're both safe. Nothing can take this sister from you. Also, all others who laid a claim on you…” She stepped close to Max. “They'll have to come through me first, and they won't survive that.”

 

“You mean the deal is…” Max started to ask.

 

“It is no more. Consider it my thanks to you for your kindness.” Rowena nodded and he took her hand again and squeezed it.

 

“Thank you,” Max said.

 

“Don't mention it,” Rowena replied with a smile.

 

There were questions after that. Max explained as little as he could. Rowena and Sam came to Dean and the baby. “Ever going to tell us her name?” Dean asked.

 

“Soon enough,” Rowena said. “You certainly are a patient one Dean Winchester.

 

“He is not,” Cas offered.

 

Sam laughed and said, “Guess that’s our cue to get this naming party going again.” Sam and Rowena went back to the front of the room. “So, next we’d like to call up Charlie and my mom.” Sam reached out toward them.

 

“Sam, we are so ready for the baby’s name already. You all don’t need to thank us anymore,” Mary said from her spot next to Bobby.

 

“Guess you all want to know what we named her?” Sam grinned.

 

“You’re damn right we do,” Mary called out. She held up her glass and said, “To my granddaughter ‘What’s Her Face’ just doesn’t roll off the tongue so well.”

 

They all laughed. Sam held out his hand toward his mom again. “Come up here.”

 

Then Rowena did the same but held out her hand toward Charlie. “Come up here, dearie.”

 

“Why me though? I didn’t do anything to help this along.” Charlie said. She stood though and followed Mary’s lead. When she got to Rowena’s side she said, “You gonna curse me, Witch?” She smiled as she said it.

 

“I do owe you.” Rowena leaned into her side and smiled. She turned her eyes toward the group and said, “I met you when I was at a low place. I lost my son. I lost my sense of self. I was aching and lost. You befriended me and traveled over the vast world with me when I needed that companionship the most. You’ll never know what that meant to me.” She took Charlie’s hand and squeezed it.

 

Sam spoke next. “Mom, you might just be the strongest woman I’ve ever met. You’ve harrowed death.”

 

“Pretty sure you’re talking about Rowena, Sammy,” Mary said with a smile.

 

“I’m talking about you, but Rowena is also tough as nails.” Sam glanced at her then back at his mom. “You’ve fought evil in multiple worlds, and all the while, you never seem to give up. I can only hope that my daughter will be as strong as her grandmother.”

 

She hugged him then, saying, “Oh Sammy.” She kissed his cheek and then stepped back, but she didn’t let him go entirely.

 

Rowena spoke again, “That’s why we have decided to name the baby after the two strongest women that we know. We didn’t want any confusion, so we decided to use your name as the middle name,” she said to Mary. “I hope that’s okay.”

 

Mary pressed her palm to her chest and said, “I’m honored.”

 

Rowena looked to Charlie and said, “We thought that instead of taking the name Charlie, we’d name her Celeste.” She enclosed Charlie’s hand in both of hers. “I can only hope that she grows up with the strength and wit of my dear friend.”

 

“Rowena,” Charlie said on a breath. She pulled Rowena into a tight hug. “I think you’re giving me a chick flick moment. Does that make me a Winchester?”

 

Mary came over and hugged them both. “I think it does.” 

 

Bobby asked, “So her name is Celeste Mary Winchester?”

 

“Celeste Mary MacLeod Winchester,” Sam said. He turned to the room, and added, “Well, that’s it. We are done eating up your evening. Although I wouldn’t say no if you kids wanted to let me eat up some of that candy.”

 

Of course, Rebekah was quick to offer up some candy. Sam joined her on the floor with the others for awhile. Dean watched it all from his space next to Cas. His brother was grinning now with a long strand of red licorice hanging from his lips. Max and Alicia sat with Patience, Charlie, and Rowena. It seemed like Rowena was teaching them something. They were mimicking her movements, and glowing, purple orbs materialized in their hands. 

 

At some point someone put on music. Dean had to give up Celeste to his mother. There was love and warmth in the air. Cas pulled Dean close, and they swayed to the music. Time seemed to pass slowly. Dean caught Sam’s eye across the room. He was swaying with Rowena to the music too. “We should probably head to bed soon,” Cas said.

 

Dean cocked an eyebrow up. “To not sleep, right?” 

 

“To sleep,” Cas paused for effect, adding, “eventually.” 

 

Cas danced Dean back into the kitchen. “Thought we were going to bed.”

 

“We have to say goodnight to everyone first and check on the kids. Then there’s the good-natured ribbing we’ll take for being the first to head to bed. It’ll be a good hour before I can do this.” Cas pressed Dean back against the wall. He kissed him hard, hands sliding up under Dean’s shirt. His nails dragged against Dean’s skin.

 

Dean flipped their position. He dropped his lips to Cas’ neck and followed the path of his jaw before heading back to Cas’ lips. “It will not be an hour,” Dean breathed out between kisses.

 

“Perhaps we’ll get lucky.”

 

Dean tipped his head back and laughed. “You’ll get lucky if you agree that we need to just sneak out of here past everyone. Just go straight to the room.” Dean rolled his hips against Cas for good measure.

 

“I agree.” With that simple pronouncement, Cas took Dean’s hand and walked back into the other room. The kids were using some of their powers with Rowena. There were mesmerizing little sparks of light coming from their fingers. It was distracting enough. Dean and Cas made their way into the center of the room. They stopped a second and turned their backs on their destination. “It’s good to see everyone so happy,” Cas said.

 

“I know. Who’d have ever thought that things would be this good.” Dean slipped an arm around Cas’ waist as they just stood and took it all in.

 

“What the!” Bobby’s voice rang out from across the room. Dean turned, following his eyes. 

 

There were four children in the doorway to the hall. They looked like they were around four or, at most, five years old, two boys and two girls. Cas stepped away from Dean toward them. They were naked. “Dean, grab some blankets.” Cas came down into a squat in front of them. Dean came over and squatting down,  wrapped a blanket around the first child. He handed the next blanket to Cas. Everyone seemed to be frozen in place.

 

They’d received new children before, but they’d never just materialized in the bunker. One of the children in front of them, a girl, stepped forward. She gently set a hand on Dean’s cheek. He looked at her and felt the truth wash over him in that moment.

 

“Well, hello there,” Dean said.


	16. Missing Things

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the delay in posting this chapter. I got some writer's block that I couldn't shake. I think I'm over that now, and there's a final chapter count now. Thanks so much for reading and for all the comments you've been leaving.

The days following the unexpected growth of the infants, left everyone a little on edge. They each dealt with the change in different ways. For Mary, there seemed to be a type of sadness that loomed over her. For Dean, there was a strange bit of enthusiasm. Sam was all caught up in his new baby rearing, so his emotional change wasn’t entirely noticed. He did though, take on a renewed interest in researching why the nephilim were with them and what the Gabriel connection might mean. This meant that everyone got pulled into the research pile.

 

Cas, oddly enough, seemed to be the most affected by the change. He let Dean take over more of the nightly duties with regards to getting the children to bed. He lingered in the doorframe as Dean read them bedtime stories. He helped, just not in the same way as before. He did his best though to keep anyone from noticing, especially the kids. 

 

He loved them. That didn’t change. For Cas, the change was personal. It was a shift from all that he had grown use to. It was a change to plans and expectations. It was an abrupt end to all those little things that parents cherish when their child is new to the world. For most parents, the change from infancy to childhood is drawn out, filled with subtle growth and change. Parents usually get to revel in the tiny moments that they helped to encourage through love.

 

Cas felt the loss of all of that. Days spent working on crawling and standing, seemed pointless now. His nights were still punctuated by his body jolting awake at 3:00 am. After four nights of waking up too early, Cas finally gave up holding it back. He stared at the ceiling and watched it all blur. The tears rolled down into his ears, making him uncomfortable. 

 

He considered slipping out of the bed to be sure that Dean wouldn’t wake up and see him like this. Dean was entirely asleep though, and movement might end that. The room glowed with the golden red light that Cas had added to the desk, a large Himalayan Salt light. He had thought at the time that it would be a nice addition to the space, as he had stubbed his toe a few times getting up for the nightly feedings. Now the light was just illuminating his sorrow.

 

_ All children grow up,  _ he reminded himself.  _ They will be safer now, _ he went on. Cas knew that some great change was on the horizon, something bigger than just the babies growing. Dean rolled over and faced him. His eyes were open, as if he hadn’t been asleep for awhile now.

 

“You okay?” Dean asked.

 

“Absolutely,” Cas said as he swiped at his eyes.

 

“You wanna talk yet?”

 

Cas closed his eyes. “I’m fine.”

 

“I think I’m supposed to be, I don’t know, like there for you when you are upset. Isn’t that like boyfriend duty number one?” Dean reached out and rubbed Cas’ arm. “Tell me what’s wrong.”

 

Cas just kept his eyes closed. He could feel the little puffs of Dean’s breath, the gentle warmth of his hand on him. “I am being selfish, and it is a bit embarrassing to talk about.”

 

“Looks more like you’re just feeling sad. Maybe start with why you’re sad.” Dean scooted toward him and slipped his arm under Cas’ shoulders to pull him closer.

 

“Remember when you asked them not to change,” Cas said as he opened his eyes. Dean nodded. “And I just said something about change being inevitable.”

 

“You were right.” Dean pressed a kiss to his head.

 

“I miss it.” Cas felt the onslaught of more tears threatening to emerge. He swallowed and said, “I miss things, stupid things, I…” He seemed to choke on the rest of his thoughts a little. He tucked his head into the side of Dean’s neck. “It’s stupid.”

 

“No, not stupid at all.” Dean stroked the space between Cas’ shoulders. “I miss things too.”

 

“I thought I’d be getting them to take their first steps soon. And they were on the brink of saying their first words. Now, it’s like they never needed any of that help.” 

 

“Maybe they did but not like you thought.”

 

Cas pulled back a little and looked at him. “I wanted to be the one to help little Samuel take his first step. I wanted to hear him say my name or call me dad. And it’s stupid. I shouldn’t have even been trying to teach him that. I’m not his father. I’m just the one that Gabriel decided to send him to.”

 

“Cas,” Dean started. Cas swallowed back whatever else he was going to say. “You have been a father to them. It’s just like it has been with Jack. They need you. I’d even dare to say that you are entirely loved by all of them. Jack, Samuel, Ellie, the whole lot of them.” Dean brushed back Cas’ hair from his forehead. It was getting long. “You gave them what they needed to make this change. They didn’t feel safe enough before.”

 

Cas dropped his gaze. “I know.”

 

“Do you?”

 

“I do, but I’m still missing it all, the feeling of it.”

 

Dean sighed, “I know. It was nice to feel so needed.”

 

“Soon enough, they’ll be driving and leaving whenever they want.” Cas let a little tear escape.

 

“Pretty sure we’re not there yet, buddy.” Dean laughed a little. It was soft. “Sam has been keeping me from thinking about it too much. He keeps throwing research at me. Maybe you could join us on that. It might be a nice distraction.”

 

“I’ve been helping with their training though.”

 

“And that has likely made you even more depressed. You’ve been watching them do stuff with their powers, not baby stuff like gurgling and whining for milk.”

 

“You may have a point.” Cas felt a little more in control. “You should have seen how impressive Ellie was yesterday. She was able to move the feather several feet. She only scorched it a little on the edges.”

 

Part of the practice that he and Jack had devised involved feathers. They had set some feathers on a table and had told the kids to move them with their powers. In the beginning there were a lot of burnt feathers.

 

They each got better though. When Phobos and Deimos first started practicing, there were tiny fires everywhere. Rebekah had proved to be the most adept. Ellie was a close second now. Ironically, Phobos, who had showed the most promise before, seemed to be in need of more practice than even the newest children in the group. Jack had promised to work with him though, so Cas pushed the worry aside. 

 

Dean pulled Cas close again, then rolled him onto his back, pinning him down with his weight. “You've been thinking about it all way too much. Sounds like you just need a distraction.”

 

“I'm crushingly distracted,” Cas breathed out.

 

Dean shifted his weight so Cas could breathe. “Better?”

 

“Hmm.” Cas smiled and sat up a little, pressing a quick kiss to Dean's lips. “Still not distracted.”

 

“I can fix that,” Dean said with a smirk. He slipped his hand between them and into the front of Cas’ sweats. “Well, will you look at that. Someone’s distracted.”

 

Cas rocked up into his grip. “I will likely need a lot of distracting.”

 

“It's been awhile. You sure you can handle it?”

 

“I hear it's like riding a bike. You don't forget once you learn it.” Cas moved his hands to Dean's hips and squeezed. Dean rocked a little into him.

 

“We haven't exactly been doing much riding, but I'm not opposed to trying new things.” Dean stopped moving his hand and just held Cas a little loosely as he waited for a response.

 

“Are you saying…” Cas didn't finish the question. He just stared at Dean past a squint.

 

“I mean if you don't want that, that's fine. I just…” Cas stopped his words with a kiss. 

 

Cas wondered if he should ease up. It felt like he was maybe bruising Dean's mouth, but Dean didn't seem to mind. He even bit Cas’ lip a little. “I love you,” Cas managed to breathe out. Then a moment later, “I love you,” he said it again.

 

Dean eventually sat back on his knees and stared down at Cas. “How do you want this to go?”

 

“I have no clue.” For all the times Cas had played out this moment, it had never been specific with regards to who was putting what where. It was just the closeness that he craved, the feeling that they couldn't get any closer to each other.

 

“I don't know that it matters to me how we do this, but I want to know that we'll get to other options too. I mean just because we decide to do things one way tonight doesn't mean we won't try out something else the next time, right?”

 

Cas nodded then said, “I think I want to try all of the things with you.”

 

“Well, that sounds promising.” Dean licked his lips. “So, uh, if I said that I've been watching some videos…”

 

“Some videos, huh?”

 

“Yeah, like some helpful, totally educational videos.”

 

Cas laughed and said, “You mean porn.”

 

“I may mean porn,” Dean said as he swooped down for a kiss. “Anyway, I think that I want to try riding the proverbial bike if you don't mind.”

 

Cas hummed like he was thinking about it. Really his mind was just crashing down halls of thought. Dean reached over to the night stand, which just got them all pressed together in new ways. Cas groaned. “I'm not sure I'll last.”

 

“Here,” Dean said as he pressed a tube of lube into his hand. “I'll stop tormenting you for a bit while we get ready.”

 

Dean rolled onto the bed beside Cas and grinned. Then he shimmied out of his sweats and boxers. “I don't see how you think this is going to keep me from…” Cas waved his hands over himself.

 

“Well, if all else fails, I'll let you blow me.” Dean's lips quirked up like he was going to laugh but didn't.

 

“Solid plan.” Cas flipped open the tube and tried to take a reasonable amount out for his finger. Way more came out and his hand was quite slick. “This is a mess.”

 

“I think that's okay.” Dean dragged Cas’ hand to his ass. “Right there.” 

 

Cas closed his eyes a moment and tried to school his own emotions. He opened his eyes though when Dean eased back onto his hand. “Don't rush me,” Cas said.

 

“Not rushing, just helping things along.” Dean kissed him again, and it progressed into more. Cas pulled him closer. After spending time just dragging his finger around the region, he finally eased his finger in. Dean gasped a little bit and continued to kiss him. “I love you,” Dean breathed out. 

 

If it weren't for Dean kissing him through this, Cas thought that he would have grown nervous about hurting Dean. Instead, Dean's mouth encouraged him. Cas added more fingers when Dean asked for them. He twisted his finger and stretched the space that would accommodate him soon enough. In time, Dean even shoved Cas back and said, “So ready. How about you?”

 

Cas just stared at him for a moment, mouth agape. “I,” he started, and looked down at himself. “Uh, yeah, quite.”

 

“Then let's do this.” Dean made a rolling motion with his hand then said, “On your back.”

 

Cas rolled into his back, and there was Dean right back on him. Dean was doing a lot of the work here, lining himself up, then sinking down. Cas’ mind was short circuiting. Everything was sparks and super concentrated emotions. Every place that Dean touched him was so sensitive.  _ Breathe. _ He told himself.  _ You have to do that now. _

 

Dean began moving, slowly, letting Cas get use to it. Then his movements became steady and a little more intense. “You can move Cas. I won't break.” Dean leaned down and kissed him.

 

“It's all so much,” Cas managed to say. So Dean caressed his cheek and kept a slow pace. Cas began meeting his efforts with his own. Cas’ mind finally let go of the worries and sadness. At least in this moment it was all just Dean, the million points of contact. He focused on Dean’s hand that lay splayed over his heart. He focused on Dean’s thighs that squeezed his hips. He breathed and breathed the thick air, the moans that drifted down to him from Dean above him. Time passed slowly, like a long summer afternoon. It was warm and gentle. Occasionally, it was not. Occasionally, it was rough and fast and out of sync. They fell in and out of patterns of movements, finding moments of pure bliss in the trial and error of this angle or that.

 

Dean somehow had the strength to roll them over. Cas had to rearrange a bit, but he was back in the zone, throwing his all into the last leg of the race toward orgasm. He reached under Dean’s lower back and lifted him a little to get the angle just right. He found a quick pace that he liked and that made Dean’s breathing hitch with each thrust. 

 

“This is amazing. You are amazing.” Dean tipped his head to the side and tried to kiss Cas’ wrist, whatever he could reach. Cas reached between them and took hold of Dean. That sped things along to the inevitable end. The moment was like bright light blotting out the world. Cas squeezed his eyes shut and gave a little more. There was just silence between them except for the ragged breathing that showed their efforts. Cas was shaking as he rolled back to his side. Dean  brushed back Cas’ hair. Dean's fingernails felt great on Cas’ scalp. 

 

“I want us to practice that more.” Cas smiled into Dean's neck.

 

“I will practice with you every night if you want.” Cas could hear the smile in Dean's voice. It was so good to be this happy, finally.

 

* * *

 

The rest of the bunker was quiet. The gym was littered with feathers all over the scattered mats. Jack sat in the gym with Phobos. For once, he was not with his brother. “It gets easier,” Jack encouraged.

 

“They are all better than me,” Phobos muttered towards his feet.

 

Jack set a hand on his shoulder. He only looked older, but in this moment he actually felt like he was older. Phobos had been trying to lift the feathers without turning them to ash. He’d had very little luck. Until quite recently he’d been one of the best at the task, then something changed. “You just need more practice is all.”

 

“I'm going to need to have control. If I mess up, someone could get hurt.” Phobos sounded like he was going to cry. He swallowed though, and he pressed his lips together in a look of determination.

 

Jack said, “Maybe we should try doing this in a different way.” Jack got up and reached down to pull up Phobos. “Come here.” They walked to the table that had a pile of feathers on it. “I keep having you select single feathers to move. At first you were doing great with that, but now it's like you're worrying over it. It's not casual anymore.”

 

“What should I do then? I can't stop worrying.”

 

“Maybe not.” Jack took a step aside and said, “Move all of the feathers at the same time.”

 

“All of them?” Phobos looked from the pile to Jack.

 

Jack just nodded. Phobos concentrated on the feathers. They shook, then rose from the table. “Shape them. Let's get them into the shape of a sphere.”

 

The feathers squeezed into a large white sphere. Phobos’ brow pinched together. The edges started to smoulder, but only a little. “I'm doing it!” 

 

“Now spread them out.” Jack waved his hand overhead, signifying the whole ceiling. 

 

Phobos said, I don't think I can.”

 

The edges were starting to look a little singed. “Do it,” Jack said, his voice just a little forceful. He saw the worry on Phobos’ face. He reached over and took Phobos’ hand. “You can do it.”

 

The feathers blasted apart, filling the whole space above them in the gym with the fluttery whiteness. None of them were smouldering anymore. Phobos squeezed Jack's hand. “Are you helping me?”

 

“You can tell I'm not.” Jack squeezed his hand back. “This is all you.” 

 

Phobos smiled and threw his arms around Jack. When he did, all of the feathers began drifting down to the floor. “Thank you Jack. Thank you.”

 

* * *

 

Jack made his way to Dean and Cas’ room after Phobos went off to his own to maybe brag about his success. Something Phobos had said though, stuck with Jack, and talking it out with Cas seemed like something he should do.

 

Jack gave the door a little knock. It was early, but not horribly so. “Yeah,” Dean's voice called out.

 

Jack opened the door and poked his head in. “Am I waking you guys up?”

 

Cas sat up and said, “Not really. Something wrong?”

 

Jack pushed the door closed behind him, and Cas turned on the small lamp on the nightstand. Jack sat down at the desk and faced them. “I was working with Phobos on the feather moving exercise.”

 

“How's that going?” Cas asked.

 

“Excellent. We made real progress.” Jack folded his hands on his knees. “Using one's powers fully is easy if you don't care who might get hurt in the process. Phobos cares. A lot more than he use to.”

 

Cas nodded and said, “That happens.”

 

“It influenced his power. He worries about hurting things now which leads to him scorching the feathers. Worry is bad for their powers.” Jack paused a moment.

 

“So what's got you worried, Jack?” Dean asked.

 

“Something he said. They're all still under that compulsion, but sometimes you can pick up on things, you know.”

 

Cas said, “A little. Like if they use hypotheticals…”

 

“Not just that. Sometimes when they speak without really thinking about what they're saying, they really tell you things.”

 

Dean interrupted, “So, what did Phobos tell you?”

 

“He said he needed to have control or someone could get hurt. This is true, but the way he said it, it sounded like he was worried about something more immediate. I think something's coming.”

 

Dean looked to Cas and Cas looked back at him. “Guess it had to come to a head eventually.” 

 

Cas said, “But what do we do? We still have no real clue what we're preparing for or even why the kids were sent here.”

 

Dean got up and started getting dressed. “I think we're all just not saying it.” He glanced from Cas to Jack. “Pretty sure we're going to be bringing Gabriel back. What we don’t know is how.”

 

* * *

 

They gathered everyone around the war room table. They spoke of Dean's theory and looked to the children for a response. Donna sat next to Kaia. “Do you think it could be Gabriel wanting you all to pull him back from the empty?”

 

Kaia looked at Donna and replied, “It's hard to know what's to come.” Her brows scrunched up like she wanted to say more.

 

Donna said, “I'm gonna take that non-response as a solid maybe.”

 

Claire sat on Kaia's other side. She took her hand. “Has anything changed recently to make us think that all of this is finally coming to a head?” 

 

Sam spoke up then, “Celeste was just born.”

 

They all looked at him now with worry. Kaia added, “The monsters that chased us here have stopped chasing me.” She looked back toward the door. “Either that or they're just waiting for me to come out.”

 

Charlie spoke up then, “You have Rowena and I too thank for that. That woman's a trooper. Even dealing with the worst labor ever, she sensed your arrival and the bad business pursuing you.” 

 

Rowena looked at Charlie with genuine affection. “Well dearie, couldn't have done the spell without you though.” 

 

Charlie continued, “We added a shield to this place that really made you disappear. It's likely that your monsters either thought you had died or that you left this universe. Either way, they're gone. It also seems to have discouraged the rest of the nephilim wanting crowd.”

 

Donna asked, “Does this mean that they're off terrorizing people though? I mean there were a lot of 'em and they were not fun.”

 

“Not sure. We could patrol the area.” Charlie got up and paced a little. “Seems  like we’d have heard something about them. I'm guessing they went quiet.” 

 

Dean interrupted, “So what do we do about the Gabriel mission that these guys are on?”

 

“What makes you think they can pull an archangel back from the dead?” Charlie asked.

 

Dean looked to Jack. “We've seen it happen before. When Cas,” Dean seemed to choke up a bit on the word. Cas put a hand on his arm. Dean looked at him and continued. “When Cas died, I was a mess, fucking awful. Jack got the worst of me.” Dean stared across the table at Jack.

 

“You know I forgive you right?” Jack said.

 

“Still feel like shit about it buddy. Anyway, he managed to pull Cas back.”

 

Cas said, “Well, it was a combination of things. It was Jack pulling me back and the Empty being angry with me. I was quite annoying.” Cas looked proud, eyes all crinkling up with his wide grin.

 

“So given all that,” Dean said, “why wouldn't it be possible for multiple nephilim to bring back an angel when one has before? And if the angel has to be annoying to some great entity, well, who's more annoying than Gabe?”

 

Sam spoke up then. “I’d like to address the other issue that we’re not talking about.” He looked to Rowena who was holding their sleeping daughter. “Celeste is Gabriel’s vessel, and frankly, I’m not okay with him just taking up residence.”

 

“None of us are,” Dean said.

 

“Perhaps there are other reasons for her becoming his vessel.” Rowena rose from the table. She paced along the side, looking regal in her flowing, velvet gown. “Perhaps she will just draw him to this place.”

 

“He’ll need a vessel though,” Cas said.

 

“Could we get him an alternative to Celeste?” Dean asked. Before anyone could answer, he seemed to cringe a little and said, “Not like someone unwilling. I mean, is there another way?”

 

Cas hummed next to Dean and got up. He walked to Rowena and said, “We could bring back his vessel right? The one in the other world.”

 

“I can open the portal, but he’s dead, has been for a long time. He’s hardly a viable vessel.”

 

Max stepped over to her. He’d been leaning into the door frame outside of the conversation. He set a hand on Celeste’s head and said, “You have a coven now. I reckon we can fix this minor problem. Also,” he looked down at Celeste, “there’s likely something here we’re just not seeing yet, some reason for this change to the vessel line.” He smiled and returned his gaze to Rowena. 

 

Together they turned and looked at Sam, then back at Celeste and said, “Oh.”

 

* * *

 

Dean was gathering supplies when Cas came up behind him. He looped his arms around Dean’s waist and rested his chin on Dean’s shoulder. “Finding everything okay?”

 

Dean held up a jar with a bit of fruit from the tree of life. “Yeah.” He turned his head to the side a little and pecked the side of Cas’ mouth. “You still married to the djinn queen?”

 

Cas shrugged. “Not sure. It was a confusing time.”

 

Dean hummed. “We should maybe look into that at some point.”

 

“Why?”

 

“Reasons.” Dean pulled more items from the shelf and placed them into the bowl that he held.

 

“Reasons?”

 

“Not a fan of you being a married man.”

 

“It wasn’t binding. Or at least it shouldn’t be. I didn’t know what I was consenting to, and, frankly, you already have a claim.”

 

Dean turned out of the hold Cas had on him and looked into his eyes. “I had a claim?”

 

“Have. And yes. I’ve been yours for awhile now. Even if we hadn’t said as much, it was true.” Dean just smiled and leaned into the kiss that would always be his and his alone. “I’m fine with looking into it though. I don’t want you to feel concerned.”

 

Dean kissed him again. When they stopped, he leaned back and asked, “You think Sam is freaking out a little?”

 

“You’re his brother. What do you think?”

 

Dean sighed and leaned into the shelf a little. “I think he’s really freaking out. He’s been a vessel before, been possessed before, and I don’t think he fancies going down that road again.”

 

“I can’t believe I didn’t see it.” Castiel began carrying the bowl and ingredients out to the other room. Dean stopped him, with a hand to his arm.

 

“It won’t be permanent, right?”

 

Castiel stared into his eyes. “I would never let anything hurt you or your family.” Castiel dropped his gaze and added, “I may not be an angel anymore, but I’d move heaven and earth to protect my family. You and Sam are my family.”

 

“Gabriel is your family too,” Dean said.

 

“That’s true, but he doesn’t get to have Sam. I promise.”

 

Dean leaned in and kissed him again. “I’m just going to do my best not to worry.”

 

“We’ll be too busy to worry.”

 

“You got that right,” Dean said as they walked back out to the war room.

 

**Author's Note:**

> As always thank you for any kudos you feel like leaving and any kind words. You can also find me on Tumblr under the name [Spearywritesstuff](http://spearywritesstuff.tumblr.com/) or more often on Twitter under the name [Spearywrites](https://twitter.com/spearywrites)


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